Herman J. Russell

Herman Jerome Russell (December 23, 1930 – November 15, 2014) was an entrepreneur and influential figure in Atlanta, Georgia.

Business career
Russell served as the first African American member of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. He founded H. J. Russell & Company, the largest minority-owned real estate and construction business in the United States. Russell was a 1991 recipient of the Horatio Alger Award, and received the title Georgia Trustee from the Georgia Historical Society in 2013. Russell's autobiography Building Atlanta was published in April 2014, shortly before his death.

Death
Herman J. Russell died on November 15, 2014, at the age of 83, in Atlanta Georgia and was buried at South-View Cemetery. After his death, DNA proved that Russell fathered a daughter out of wedlock, Joycelyn Alston. Courts ruled that Alson was not entitled to any portion of his estate as he had left behind a will disinheriting any potential children born out-of-wedlock.