Emily Russell
In memory of
Mrs. Emily Russell
wife of
Charles Russell
Born
April 2nd, A.D. 1831
Died July 25th, A.D. 1854
Aged
25 years, 3 mos., 21 days
Photo Credit: Rosa G. Gonzales
Biography
There is some confusion regarding this person and possible descendents because of the possible presence of at least two men named "Charles Russell" in the Corpus Christi area. According to her tombstone, Emily was born 2 April 1831 and was the wife of Charles Russell. The two are found in the 1850 census of Madison County, Florida (page 84B or 85A depending on how you read the paging). Charles is from North Carolina, and Emily is a native of Florida. They have a couple of children already: Anna M. age 2 years and Cameron S. age 1 year. The couple subsequently moved to Nueces County, and Emily appears to have died in the yellow fever epidemic of 1854. Her stone lists the fateful day as 25 July 1854. Charles was a young father of multiple children so it is not surprising that he would have married again. The Marriage Records of Nueces County (volume B misc., page 69-70) report his marriage to Mary E. Dix (who also has family in Old Bayview Cemetery) in October of 1855. In the 1860 census of Nueces County (page 278), they are listed as living on the Casa Blanca Ranch. Mary as a member of the Dix family is listed as a native of Michigan. The children listed are Anna (age 12), Joe (age 10), John (age 7), and Mary (age 2). The three oldest children are all reported as natives of Florida and would be the children of Emily while little Mary is a native of Texas and a child born to Charles and his second wife. Since Mary Russell nee Dix raised the older children, it is not surprising to find that the obituary of Joseph Russell states that he is the son of "Major Charles Russell, his mother being before her marriage Miss Mary Dix" (C. C. Caller of 10 April 1921, page 2 col. 5). Charles held a major's commission in the Confederacy during the Civil War, but he died shortly after the war after a protracted illness. The announcement of his death in the Daily Ranchero of Brownsville (20 November 1869, page 1 col. 3) notes that he was born in Wilmington, Md. However, the correct place of birth should read Wilmington, North Carolina. His death certificate from Stafford Springs, Connecticut where he died gives the correct city of birth. It also states that he was a widower at the time of his death so Mary Dix Russell must have also died already. His parents' names are given as Samuel and Elizabeth Russell. Charles died far from the gravesite of his first wife Emily on 24 October 1869. As noted, there may be some confusion as to whether there were in fact two men named "Charles Russell". The local papers indicate that a "Charles Russell" was also the one elected President when the citizens of Nueces County met to consider secession at the beginning of the Civil War. The camp where local members of Hobby's 8th Infantry gathered in Banquete was also known as "Camp Charles Russell", and the quartermaster who served the Confederacy in south Texas is named "Charles Russell". Finally, after the war, the Federals occupied the "Charles Russell" house at 802 N. Chaparral Street, and Confederates granted paroles took the oath of allegiance to the United States there (see Briscoe's "City by the Sea" pp. 189 and 246). It is unclear if these are all the same person. If not, then there is more than one Charles Russell who was a "major" in the Confederacy and serving in south Texas. As noted above, among the descendents of the Charles Russell who married Mary E. Dix was Edward Joseph Russell. While Joseph's obit says that his mother is the former Mary Dix, his age and his birthplace of Florida (see Beeville Bee of 14 April 1921, page 3 col. 2-3) point to the likelihood that his mother is actually Emily. Edward Joseph Russell died in San Antonio where he lived the last 27 years of his life. However, he left numerous descendents in the Beeville area. His daughter Gertrude Russell was the wife of Allen Carter "Dick" Jones (25 Feb. 1884 to 10 Nov. 1957) who was prominent in the history of Beeville. Her story indicates that the Russell family moved around after the Civil War, possibly because of the death of both parents. Anna Gertrude Russell was born to Edward Joseph Russell and Susan McCampbell (with connections to the Ralph McCampbell Ranch in Hebbronville) on 16 April 1894 while her parents were residing in Presidio, Texas. After her marriage to "Dick" Jones, she eventually moved with her husband to Beeville. Their daughter Lonella Jones married James Lincoln Borglum, the son of Gutzon and Mary Borglum. Gutzon and James Lincoln Borglum were both principal sculptors of Mt. Rushmore. At any rate, Emily Russell died a young mother of only 23 years old during one of the ravaging yellow fever epidemics that periodically hit the Gulf coast and devastated not only her family but many of the local pioneers of this area.
Research and transcription: Michael A. Howell