DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Robert B. Russell.
Born April 1, 1817, in New Milford, Connecticut — a long, long way from the piney woods of East Texas. But by 1835, he'd made the journey, landing in San Augustine, Texas, at a moment when Texas itself was about to become something new. He didn't just watch history unfold from the porch.
He joined the Texian Army and fought at San Jacinto. The man was there. After the smoke cleared, Russell planted roots.
He married Lavinia Brownrigg on June 1, 1841, and together they raised six children. But Russell wasn't a man content to sit still, and he had ink in his veins along with everything else. Starting in 1846, he published the San Augustine Redlander, keeping that paper going until 1850.
Then the road called again. He moved to Sabine Pass in 1850, and four years later, in 1854, he settled in Orange. When the war years came, Russell served as postmaster of Orange under the Confederacy, from 1861 to 1865.
Then, when those years had passed and the region was finding its footing again, Russell found his next chapter. About 1870, he entered the lumber business, running a steam-operated shingle mill. Now, a steam-powered shingle mill in that era was no small thing — the man was prospering.
By most accounts, things were going well. And that's what makes what happened next land so hard. Robert B.
Russell died on November 29, 1880 — and the marker doesn't soften it. It calls it an untimely death. In a mill accident.
The very enterprise he'd built, the one he was prospering in, is where his story ended. Born in New Milford, Connecticut, in 1817. Gone in Orange, Texas, in 1880.
Soldier, publisher, postmaster, businessman — and a man the county of Orange saw fit to remember.
What the marker says
(April 1, 1817 - Nov. 29, 1880) Born in New Milford, Conn.; emigrated to San Augustine, Texas, 1835. Joined Texian Army and fought at San Jacinto. Married Lavinia Brownrigg, June 1, 1841; had 6 children. Published San Augustine "Redlander," 1846-50; moved to Sabine Pass, 1850, then Orange, 1854. Served as postmaster of Orange under Confederacy, 1861-65. Entered lumber business about 1870, with steam-operated shingle mill. Prospered until untimely death in mill accident. Recorded - 1973