Russell was born in Auburn, New York in 1870. After graduating from
Cornell University in 1891, Russell received his Doctor of Medicine from
Columbia University in 1893 and his
Doctor of Science from
George Washington University in 1917. In 1898, he was commissioned as
first lieutenant in the
Medical Corps of the U.S. Army. It was during his time as a
Medical Corps officer that he began his research into the inoculation of soldiers against typhoid. In 1908,
Surgeon General O'Reilly sent Russell to England to observe the work of Sir
Almroth Wright, Professor at the
Royal Army Medical College, who had been experimenting with a method of prophylaxis with killed culture of typhoid organisms to immunize against the disease. Upon Russell's return, he submitted a report on Wright's research, which O'Reilly considered "a very valuable treatise on the epidemiology of this disease". He conducted trials at the
Army Medical Museum comparing the efficacy of both an orally administered and an injected vaccine. He packed the vaccine in small single dosage using small glass ampoules which, unlike the 1 liter flasks used in the United Kingdom, ensured that all of the typhoid micro-organisms were killed. File:Typhoid vaccine syringe.jpg |Hypodermic Syringe used in typhoid vaccination clinical trials at the Army Medical Museum in March 1909. (Historical Collections, National Museum of Health and Medicine, M-179.00111) As a result of the report, Russell was assigned the duty of implementing an immunization program within the U.S. Army. In 1910 he inoculated his first group of volunteers and by 1911 vaccination became compulsory. From a morbidity of 173 cases in 1910, Russell was able to reduce the total to nine cases in 1912 with only one death. During his career he served as curator of the
Army Medical Museum from 1907 to 1911, instructor in the Army Medical School, and professor of
pathology and
bacteriology at
George Washington University. In addition, he served on various investigating boards, one of which he was able to advise and offer technical counsel to
Major Carl Darnall in the development of a water filter for field use and the first water
chlorinator using gaseous chlorine. After his resignation from the Army in 1921, Russell returned to the rolls as a reserve officer and in November 1920 was appointed Brigadier General of the
Medical Officers Reserve Corps. Following his military career he served as the director of the
International Health Board of the
Rockefeller Foundation. As director, Russell continued his research into public health focusing on diseases such as
yellow fever. In 1935 he was awarded the
Public Welfare Medal from the
National Academy of Sciences. He spent the final years (1936–39) of his career in medical science and administration as professor of
epidemiology and
preventive medicine at
Harvard Medical School and
Harvard School of Public Health. In 1942, he was presented with the
Gorgas Medal from the
Association of Military Surgeons of the United States (AMSUS). ==References==