William Greeneberry "Green" Russell (1818–1877) was an American

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

prospector Prospector may refer to: Space exploration * Prospector (spacecraft), a planned lunar probe, canceled in 1962 * ''Lunar Prospector'', a NASA spacecraft Trains * Prospector (train), a passenger train operated by the Denver & Rio Grande Western ra ...

and

miner A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face (mining), face; cutt ...

Early life

Green Russell was born in

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

but moved with his family to

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

as a small child. His father James Russell engaged in gold mining during the

Georgia Gold Rush The Georgia Gold Rush was the second significant gold rush in the United States and the first in Georgia, and overshadowed the previous rush in North Carolina. It started in 1829 in present-day Lumpkin County near the county seat, Dahlonega, ...

that started in 1828 and Green came of age in a local economy dominated by mining. In 1845 he married Susan Willis who was 1/8th

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

Mining in California

When gold was found at

Sutter's Mill Sutter's Mill was a water-powered sawmill on the bank of the South Fork American River in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in California. It was named after its owner John Sutter. A worker constructing the mill, James W. Marshall, found go ...

in 1848, a cook for Sutter's crew who was a Georgia native sent word back home enabling Russell to learn of the discovery. Russell led a couple of successful mining ventures to California which included his brothers and other Georgians including Cherokees, some of whom made the trek west overland through the Rockies.

Colorado Gold

Russell had spent his boyhood in the Cherokee country near Dahlonega, site of the only significant gold rush east of the Mississippi, in what would become Dawson County, along the Etowah River. Circa 1850 he purchased 500 acres of property on the Etowah River, for $10,000. Much of this property is still held by his descendants. Russell Creek, which flows into the Etowah River, is named for his family and there are family members buried in the Palmer/McClure cemetery on the property. His home is still there, maintained much as it was in his day by his descendants. The bonanza in California sent him across the continent in 1849, and along the way he panned a little gold in the Sweetwater River, in southwest Wyoming just east of the Rockies. During the next few years Russell moved restlessly - home to Georgia, back to the Pacific, then home again in 1852. Then, through his Cherokee connections Russell heard about an 1849 discovery of gold along the

South Platte River The South Platte River is one of the two principal tributaries of the Platte River. Flowing through the U.S. states of Colorado and Nebraska, it is itself a major river of the American Midwestern United States, Midwest and the American Sou ...

at the foot of the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...

. He organized a party to prospect along the South Platte River, setting off with his two brothers and six companions in February 1858. They rendezvoused with Cherokee tribe members along the

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in Colorado, specifically ...

in present-day

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

and continued westward along the

Santa Fe Trail The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri, with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1821 by William Becknell, who departed from the Boonslick region along the Missouri River, the ...

. Others joined the party along the way until their number reached 107. The few accounts of Russell suggest a confident man who inspired trust. In a later portrait he has a direct, drowsy-eyed look of assurance. Whatever his appeal, Russell convinced the others to stand against adversities the expedition may have presented Upon reaching Bent's Fort, they turned to the northwest, reaching the confluence of Cherry Creek and the South Platte on May 23. The site of their initial explorations is in present-day Confluence Park in Denver. They began prospecting in the river beds, exploring Cherry Creek and nearby Ralston Creek but without success. After twenty days, several decided to return home, leaving the Russell brothers and ten other men behind. In the first week of July 1858, Green Russell and Sam Bates found a small placer deposit near the mouth of Little Dry Creek that yielded about 20

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s (620 g) of gold, then worth about 380 dollars (about $44,000

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...

today), the first significant gold discovery in the Rocky Mountain region. Word of gold first reached the rest of the nation when an old trader named John Cantrell who had visited the Russell diggings arrived in Kansas City in 1858 with samples to back up his story. Newspapers began to print stories of the findings, starting the Pike's Peak Gold Rush. In early 1859, Russell was drawn to the mountains by the discovery of gold in nearby Gregory Gulch. He discovered placer gold deposits in June 1859 in the valley that was soon named Russell Gulch in his honor. By the end of September, 891 men were mining gold in the gulch, and the eponymous town was built near the head of the gulch to serve the miners. While his mining activities were successful, the political environment turned against Green as Union men began to outnumber southerners. Green attempted to get back to Georgia but his party was first struck by

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

and then intercepted by the Union army.

Later years

After the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

Russell returned to Colorado but was not as successful as he had been previously. After the death of his son John in a mining accident in 1874 he sought to gain land in the

Indian Territory Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United States, ...

through his Cherokee wife. He settled there but was contemplating a return to Georgia when he became ill and died in 1877. He is buried at Briartown, Oklahoma.

Places named for Russell

Two towns in Colorado are named after Russell, both in locations where he found gold: Russellville, now an unincorporated suburban community in Douglas County, and Russell Gulch, a former mining town in Gilpin County. According to City and County of Denver records, the parcel of land at 37th and Vine street known as Russell Square Park was named after W. Green Russell in 1914. Parks and Recreation document dated September 1967. Legal Description: Block 8 of Cheesman and Moffat's Addition, NE 1/4 Sec.26-T3S-R68W. In downtown Denver, the bar Green Russell derives its name from Russell.

References