William Russell Ellis (April 23, 1850 – January 18, 1915) was an American educator, attorney and politician in the state of Oregon.

A native of Indiana, he grew up in Iowa before moving to Oregon where he worked as a school superintendent and district attorney.

[3] Shortly afterwards, Ellis was elected as circuit judge for Oregon's sixth judicial district,[1][3] during which time he moved from Heppner to Pendleton.

[1] In 1906, with incumbent congressman John N. Williamson mired in ongoing legal troubles due to the Oregon land fraud scandal, Ellis won the Republican nomination for his old Congressional seat, this time in a direct primary, one of the results of the "Oregon System" reforms of the early 20th century.

[3] He also won in the general election, and served two more terms before losing the 1910 Republican primary to Walter Lafferty.