John Russell (1827-1869) was a Republican politician who was appointed

Ohio Secretary of State The secretary of state of Ohio is an elected statewide official in the state of Ohio. The Secretary of state (U.S. state government), secretary of state is responsible for overseeing elections in the state; registering business entities (corp ...

from 1868 to 1869. Russell was from Champaign County, Ohio. He was chief clerk in the office of Ohio Secretary of State William Henry Smith. Smith resigned the office January 14, 1868. John Russell was appointed by

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Rutherford B. Hayes to replace him. Smith 1898 : 244 Later that year, at the State Republican Convention, Russell came in fourth of four candidates for the nomination on the first ballot, and withdrew. Smith 1898 : 247

Biography

Russell was born September 22, 1827, in

Concord Township, Champaign County, Ohio Concord Township is one of the twelve civil township, townships of Champaign County, Ohio, Champaign County, Ohio, United States. The 2020 United States Census, 2020 census reported 1,387 people living in the township. Geography Located in the we ...

, to John and Mary Russell, farmers who were originally from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. He taught school and saved his money to enroll in Ohio Wesleyan University in 1849, from which he graduated. He returned home to marry Margaret M. Russell, (no relation). Champaign County : 686 In 1854, Russell was elected clerk of courts in his county. He served three terms for a total of nine years. He was then appointed to Smith's staff, and then appointed by Rutherford B. Hayes as

. After his term expired, Russell returned to Urbana and worked in the office of the Collector of Internal Revenue. Russell was nominated and elected to the Ohio State Senate in the fall of 1869, but was struck down by stroke and died December 16, 1869, before he could take his seat. Governor Hayes spoke at his funeral in Urbana. Russell joined the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself nationally. In 1939, th ...

at a young age.

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, John 1869 deaths 1827 births Ohio Wesleyan University alumni Secretaries of state of Ohio Ohio Republicans People from Champaign County, Ohio 19th-century Ohio politicians People from Urbana, Ohio