According to the Internet source given below, Lillian Russell [Helen Louise Leonard], was an American actress and singer born in Clinton, Iowa.
She moved to New York performing professionally by 1879, singing for Tony Pastor and had roles in comic opera. She became one of the most famous actresses and singers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, known for her beauty and style, as well as for her voice and stage presence. For many years, she was the foremost singer of operettas and musical theatre in the United States, performing continuously through the end of the 19th century.
After 1904, she switched to dramatic roles but later returned to musical roles in vaudeville and retired around 1919.
She died Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Websites:
	Lillian Russell	Biography by wikipedia.org.