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MS12-22 Johny B. Russell Collection

Johny B. Russell Collection

Collection Title: Johny B. Russell Collection

Series Number: MS12-22

Processed and Cataloged by: Processed by Dieter C. Ullrich in September of 2012.

Date Listed: September 6, 2012.

Date Span: 1959-2008 (bulk, 1970-1971)

Size of Collection: 1.0 linear foot.

Number of Boxes: 2 letter size document cases.

Type of Material: Photographs, negatives, correspondence and ephemera.

Condition of Material: Good.

Arrangement: Organized by format of material; Chronological arrangement.

Biographical / Historical Information: Johny B. Russell was a research scientist that assisted in the development of the Saturn V Launch Vehicle, Lunar Roving Vehicle and B-1 Lancer Bomber. He was born at Isley, Hopkins County, Kentucky on December 4, 1924. His family relocated to Murray, Kentucky before he entered high school. He graduated from the Murray Training School in 1942 and the following year enlisted in the United Army Air Corps. After the war, Russell attended Murray State College (presently Murray State University) where he received an undergraduate degree in physics and mathematics in 1948. Two years later he received his Masters of Arts degree in education from Murray State. He was recruited by the Union Carbide Atomic Plant in Paducah in 1951 as an engineer. In 1959, he invented and patented the Electrical Load Anticipator and Recorder. In 1961, he accepted a position at the Bourne Instrument Design Company in Riverside, California to design computer systems for the United States Navy. By the mid-1960s Russell was employed by the Boeing Company as a computer systems developer, a position he held until his retirement. He returned to Murray in 2006 and died on October 10, 2010.           

Scope and Content: Collection consists of photographic prints, negatives and contact sheets of the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) designed and built by Boeing Company for the United States Apollo 15 mission to the moon in 1971. The collection contains images of the assembly, testing, packaging, shipping and promotional photographs of the lunar rover prior to its delivery to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Included with the collections are correspondence, newspaper clippings, ephemera, biographical information related to Johny B. Russell and his career as an engineer and research scientist. Also in the collection are photographic prints of the computer systems and control panel of the B-1 bomber.     

Subject Headings / Descriptors:

Russell, Johny Brown, 1924-2010

Lunar roving vehicles.

Lunar surface vehicles.

Rockwell B-1 (Bomber)

Scientists – United States.

Computer engineers – United States.

Box List

Box 1

  1. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Astronauts- Group Photo
  2. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Boeing Prints- B-1 Bomber
  3. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Correspondence and Gift Agreement
  4. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Engineering Special Test Equipment- Lunar Rover 1971
  5. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Ephemera- Lunar Rover
  6. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Group Photographs
  7. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Lunar Rover- Tests Color Negatives 8x10
  8. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Lunar Rover on Moon Surface Color 8x10
  9. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Lunar Rover with Female Models Black and White 8x10
  10. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Lunar Rover with Female Models Color 3x4
  11. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Lunar Rover with Female Models Color 8x10
  12. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Lunar Rover with Female Models Color 8x10
  13. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Lunar Rover with Female Models Color Contact Sheets Black and White
  14. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Lunar Rover with Female Models Contact Sheets Color
  15. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 1-4044 to 1-4078
  16. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 1-4078 to 1-4099
  17. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 2A293019 to 2A299714
  18. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 2A299715 to 2A299795

Box 2

  1. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 2A299797 to 2A302014
  2. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 2A302014 to 2A302159
  3. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 2A302159 to 2A302176
  4. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 2A302176 to 2A302406
  5. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 5-71-26112 to 5-71-26200
  6. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 5-71-26202 to 5-7-26250
  7. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 5-71-26368 to 26469
  8. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 5-71-26470 to 5-71-26-509
  9. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover 5-71-26511 to 5-71-26599
  10. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection NASA Prints- Lunar Rover Not Numbered Color
  11. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Newspaper Clippings, Press Releases, etc.
  12. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Johny Russell- Photographs Contact Sheet- Color
  13. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Unidentified Lunar Rover Contact Sheets Black and White
  14. Murray State University Archives Johny B. Russell Collection Miscellaneous Photographs No Numbers