Russell Harbson Bennett was born on November 15, 1899, in Lima, Allen County, Ohio. He was the son of William A. Bennett and Lilly Pearl Staples Bennett.

In 1918, he ran away from home to join the Canadian Army. A newspaper article states that he joined the army because he wanted to follow in the footsteps of his grandparents and uncles who were in the Civil War.

Russell wrote to his parents while in the Canadian Army. In March 1919, he was discharged from military services because he had a skin condition that required treatment. On March 28, 1919, Russell enlisted in the US Navy. Service # 002334643. October 1920 US Census record lists him living on the Ex-Austro Hungarian Battleship SMS Zrínyi in the country of Dalmatia in the seaport Spalato.

Correspondence with the family ended in 1921. His family thought Russell was lost at sea or died in the USS Alameda explosion in 1921.

In 1931, Russell enlisted the help of the Toledo News Bee to locate his parents. Seeing the story, Toledo Patrolman H.G. Polick (a nephew of Mrs. Bennett) notified the parents and Russell and his family were reunited.

In March 1942, ship records list him on the SS Ballot as an Ordinary Seaman from Temperance, Michigan. The SS Ballot was part of the PQ13 convoy that was hit by a Force 8 gale and later torpedoes from German forces. Half the crew stayed with the SS Ballot, and the other half (including Russell) abandoned the ship in a port boat and were picked up by the SS Silja. On March 29, they boarded the SS Induna. On March 30, the SS Induna was hit by torpedoes and sank.

During the attack on the SS Induna, Russell suffered horrible burns on his body, face, hands, and feet but managed to get into one of the lifeboats. He and his shipmates were in a lifeboat for 4 days until they were rescued by a Russian patrol boat. He later died in a Murmansk hospital.

Note: Some sources spell his surname as Bennet.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com