Brumby, R. T. (Richard Trapier), 1804-1875

Richard Trapier Brumby, born on 4 August 1804 in Sumter, South Carolina, was the sixth of ten children and the third son of Thomas and Susannah Greening Brumby. He was a lawyer, the editor of the Tuscaloosa Expositor, and professor of chemistry, mineralogy and geology at the University of Alabama from 1834-1849.

Brumby married Mary Isabella Brevard on 22 April 1828, in Lincolnton, North Carolina. The couple had at least eight children. His grandson, Richard B. Russell, was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia from 1923 to 1938, and his great-grandson, Richard B. Russell, Jr., was governor of Georgia, 1931-1933, and afterwards a United States Senator, from 1933 until his death in 1971, serving as President Pro-Tem from 1969 to 1971.

Richard Trapier Brumby died on 6 October 1875 in Athens, Georgia. Mary, having died the previous day (5 October 1875), and Richard were buried on the same day in Athens, Georgia. The University of Georgia was closed the day of the funeral, and his extensive rock and mineral collection is held at Davidson College, North Carolina.

From the guide to the Richard Trapier Brumby letter MSS. 0224., 1834 April 2, (W.S. Hoole Special Collections Library, The University of Alabama)