Lee M. Russell

Infobox Governor
name= Lee Maurice Russell


party= Democratic
order= 40^th
title=Governor of Mississippi
term_start= January 20, 1920
term_end= January 18, 1924
lieutenant= Homer H. Casteel
predecessor= Theodore G. Bilbo
successor= Henry L. Whitfield
date of birth= birth date|1875|11|16|mf=y
place of birth= Lafayette County, Mississippi
date of death= death date and age|1943|5|5|1875|11|16|mf=y
place of death= Jackson, Mississippi
religion= Methodist
profession = Lawyer
spouse= Ethel May Day

Lee Maurice Russell (November 16, 1875 - May 5, 1943) was a Mississippi politician.

Russell was born in Lafayette County, Mississippi and later attended the University of Mississippi. During his time as a student, he was the leader in a movement to abolish Greek fraternities. Russell graduated from the university in 1901 and enrolled in the University of Mississippi law school. After completing the course, he was admitted to the bar and practiced law in Oxford, Mississippi.

Russell was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1907 and to the Mississippi State Senate in 1909. In 1912, he successfully passed a bill prohibiting secret and exclusive societies at the public institutions of higher learning'. The law stayed on the books for twelve years.

Russell was elected to the office of lieutenant governor in 1915 and elected governor in 1919. His term was marked by crop failures due to the boll weevil. Russell also filed an antitrust suit against several fire insurance companies for their business practices. In 1923, he was sued for seduction and breach of promise by his former secretary Frances Birkhead. [cite book |last=Sansing |first=David G. |authorlink= |title=The University of Mississippi: A Sesquicentennial History |url= |format= |series= |year=1999 |month= |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |location= |isbn= |oclc=39811709 |doi= |id= |page=206 |chapter= |chapterurl= |quote= |ref= ] Russell was acquitted and he blamed the lawsuit on the fire insurance industry.

Russell was unable to run for re-election due to the term limits in the Mississippi constitution at that time. He retired to the Gulf Coast of Mississippi. There he sold real estate for a period prior to returning to Jackson to practice law until his death. He is buried at Lakewood Memorial Park in Jackson.

References

External links

* [http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Russell&GSfn=Lee&GSbyrel=in&GSdyrel=in&GSob=n&GRid=17946502& Lee M. Russell's grave] at Find-A-Grave
* [http://www.nga.org/portal/site/nga/menuitem.29fab9fb4add37305ddcbeeb501010a0/?vgnextoid=1d420646cf307010VgnVCM1000001a01010aRCRD&vgnextchannel=e449a0ca9e3f1010VgnVCM1000001a01010aRCRD Profile] at National Governors Association website