The Times/1932/Obituary/Thomas Baron Russell

Mr. Thomas Baron Russell, who died yesterday at his home at Farnham, Surrey, at the age of 66, was advertisement manager of The Times for three years from 1905 to 1908, and had spent the whole of his career in the advertising business, which he helped to raise to its present efficiency in this country. Before joining the staff he had written a series of articles on advertising which were published in The Times and which attracted widespread attention.

In 1908 he began practice as the first independent advertising consultant in this country, and two years later he founded the Incorporated Society of Advertisement Consultants, of which he had been president ever since. He was the first man in this county to deliver a series of university lectures on advertising. This was in 1919, at the London School of Economics. He was also the first recipient of the cup since awarded annually by the Publicity Club of London for distinguished service to advertising. It was his constant endeavour to raise advertising to a higher level and to establish the professional status of the advertising consultant. In recent years it was as a writer on advertising and salesmanship that Mr. Russell was best known. He contributed a number of articles to The Times Trade and Engineering Supplement, as well as to the trade Press in England and America. He was also the author of a number of books. As recently as last September he was the guest of honour at a luncheon preside over by Lord Camrose and attended by all the leading men in the advertising business, at which a presentation was made to him in recognition of his long and distinguished service to advertising.

The funeral will be at Aylesford Church, Kent, to-morrow at 2 o'clock.