Howard S. Russell

Howard Symmes Russell (1887–1980) was an American author, gardener, and politician.



Howard Symmes Russell was born on July 28, 1887. His parents were Ira Locke Russell and Louisa Symmes Locke. The younger Russell ended his pursuit of higher education following graduation from Arlington High School to manage the family market garden when his father retired. Russell married Mabel Coolidge in 1913, and moved to Wayland after selling the land he owned in Arlington. Russell became a farm fire insurance broker. His public service career included a stint as trustee of the Massachusetts Agricultural College, tenure as Wayland town moderator between 1939 and 1959, and several terms in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1949 to 1954. He represented the 10th Middlesex district as a Republican.

Russell wrote A Long, Deep Furrow in 1976, followed by the posthumous publication of Indian New England before the Mayflower in 1980. He died on April 8, 1980. His wife Mabel Russell died on August 30, 1983.