Dr. Russell was born in New Brunswick, Canada, received his M.D. (1885) from the University Medical College of New York City, and interned at Jersey City Hospital. He practiced medicine for a brief period, and in 1897 he was appointed to the staff of Willard State Hospital (N.Y.). He next served as the first medical inspector for the New York Department of Mental Hygiene and then became superintendent of the Brooklyn (N.Y.) State Hospital.
In 1911, after three months of visiting mental hospitals in Europe, Dr. Russell became Medical Director of Bloomingdale, a private mental hospital affiliated with the New York private general hospital in White Plains (N.Y.). He remained in that position until 1927, when he was named Medical Director Emeritus, and then remained until 1937 as General Psychiatric Director for the Society of New York Hospital.
Dr. Russell was a Professor of Psychiatry at Cornell Medical College. He contributed to the psychiatric literature. He was a member of the American Medical Association, the Association for Research in Nervous and Mental Diseases, Vice President of the National Committee for Mental Hygiene, and Honorary President of the International Committee for Mental Hygiene.
Dr. Russell served as President of the American Psychiatric Association (1931–1932).