Bishop John J. Russell (1950-1958)
John Joyce Russell was born in Baltimore, Maryland, to John Russell and Mary Joyce Russell in 1897. Russell attended Calvert Hall and Loyola High Schools. He also studied at St. Charles College in Maryland. In 1919, he earned a Master of Arts degree from St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, and in 1923 a Doctor of Sacred Theology degree from the Pontifical Urbaniana University in Rome. In 1923, Russell’s uncle, William T. Russell, fifth bishop of Charleston, ordained him into the priesthood.
Appointed a priest in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, Russell served at St. Martin Church from 1923-1937. During that period, he founded the Catholic Evidence Guild, served as director of Catholic Big Brothers, acted as director of the Junior Holy Name society, and served as a tribunal judge for the archdiocese. In 1937, Russell became pastor of St. Ursula Parish and served until 1946. From 1946-1950, Russell served as pastor of St. Patrick Catholic Church in Washington, D.C., director of Catholic Charities, and pastor of the Church of the Nativity.
In January of 1950, Pope Pius XII appointed Russell seventh bishop of Charleston. He received his episcopal consecration the following March from Archbishop Amleto Giovanni Cicognani, with Archbishop Patrick O’Boyle and Bishop John Michael McNamara serving as co-consecrators. Bishop John Russell adopted the same coat of arms as his uncle, Bishop William T. Russell.
In 1958, Russell became bishop of Richmond and left South Carolina. He retired as bishop of Richmond in 1973. Russell died in 1993 at the age of 95.