William Russell Smith

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William Russell Smith (March 27, 1815 – February 26, 1896) was a prominent Alabama politician served in both the United States Congress and the Confederate Congress.

Smith was born in Logan County, Kentucky. He moved to Alabama at an early age and attended the University of Alabama. Smith was admitted to the bar in 1835. The next year he served as a captain of state troops in a campaign against the Creek Indians. He served as Mayor of Tuscaloosa in 1839 and as a member of the Alabama state legislature from 1841 to 1843. He later briefly served as a state judge from 1850 to 1851.

Smith served in the United States House of Representatives from 1851 to 1857, representing the Fourth District. During the American Civil War, he represented Alabama in the First Confederate Congress and the Second Confederate Congress from 1862 to 1865.

After the war, he resumed his law practice and served as president of the University of Alabama from 1869 to 1871.

[edit] References

• This article incorporates facts obtained from the public domain Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Political Graveyard