- William Russell (Kentucky)
William Russell III (
March 6 ,1758 –July 3 ,1825 ) was a soldier, pioneer, and politician fromVirginia andKentucky .He was born in
Culpepper County, Virginia to William Russell and Tabitha (Adams) Russell. William Russell, Sr., was a prominent citizen of southwestern Virginia and a colonel in theContinental Army during theAmerican Revolutionary War . In 1773, the elder Russell took his family, including William Jr., westward in the first attempt by British colonists to establish a permanent settlement inKentucky . The expedition, guided byDaniel Boone , was abandoned after an attack by American Indians. Boone's son James and Henry Russell, brother of William Russell, Jr., were captured and tortured to death in the attack.During the Revolutionary War, William Russell, Jr., fought as a captain in the
Virginia militia , taking part in theBattle of Kings Mountain as an aide to Colonel William Campbell. After the war he relocated to Kentucky, settling in 1783 in Fayette County on land that had been granted to his father for military service.He served as a colonel of
Kentucky militia in theNorthwest Indian War , and was a colonel in the 7th Infantry Regiment during theWar of 1812 , taking part in thePeoria War .Russell served in the Virginia state House of Representatives in 1790 and 1791 and in the Kentucky house in 1792, 1796-1780, 1802, and 1823.
Russell County, Kentucky is named for him, butRussellville, Kentucky andRussell County, Virginia are named for his father. [Robert M. Rennick, "Kentucky Place Names" (University Press of Kentucky, 1988), p. 259.]References
*"The Kentucky Encyclopedia".
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