Joseph M. Terrell
Joseph Meriwether Terrell (June 6, 1861 – November 17, 1912) was a United States Senator and the 57th Governor of Georgia.
Joseph M. Terrell | |
---|---|
United States senator from Georgia | |
In office November 17, 1910 – July 14, 1911 | |
Preceded by | Alexander S. Clay |
Succeeded by | M. Hoke Smith |
57th Governor of Georgia | |
In office October 25, 1902 – June 29, 1907 | |
Preceded by | Allen D. Candler |
Succeeded by | Hoke Smith |
Member of the Georgia Senate | |
In office 1890 | |
Member of the Georgia House of Representatives | |
In office 1884–1887 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Greenville, Georgia, CSA | June 6, 1861
Died | November 17, 1912 51) Atlanta, Georgia, USA | (aged
Political party | Democratic |
Background
Born in Greenville, he was the son of Dr. Joel Edgar Green and Sarah Rebecca (Anthony) Terrell.[1] He attended the common schools, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1882, commencing practice in Greenville.
On October 19, 1886, he married Jessie Lee Spivey. They had no children.[1]
Terrell was a self-declared "uncompromising friend of common school education."[2]
Terrell was of English ancestry and of partial Norman descent.[3] He was a fourth-generation great-grandson of William and Susannah (Waters) Terrell.[1] As a result, he was distantly related to presidents Barack Obama and Jimmy Carter.[4]
Career
Terrell was a member of the Georgia House of Representatives from 1884 to 1887, and a member of the Georgia Senate in 1890. He served as state attorney general from 1892 to 1902, and Governor of Georgia from 1902 to 1907, marred by the Atlanta race riot of 1906.[5] He resumed the practice of law in Atlanta, and was appointed to the U.S. Senate as a Democrat to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Alexander S. Clay, serving from November 17, 1910 to July 14, 1911, when he resigned. Terrell suffered a stroke in February 1911.[6]
Death and legacy
He again resumed the practice of law in Atlanta although in poor health and died there from Bright's Disease on November 17, 1912. He was survived by his wife.[2][6]
Interment was in the City Cemetery, Greenville.
The Liberty ship Joseph M. Terrell was named for him.[7] Terrell Hall, on the campus of Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville, was also named for him.[8]
References
- Dicken, Emma. Terrell Genealogy. San Antonio, Texas: The Naylor Company. pp. 159–160.
He was a member of the Georgia Legislature 1884- 1890; Attorney General of Georgia 1892-1902; governor of Georgia 1902-1907; a U. S. Senator in the 61st Congress.
- "Joseph M. Terrell (1861–1912)". New Georgia Encyclopedia. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
- Terrell, Edwin Holland (1909). Further Genealogical Notes on the Tyrrell-Terrell Family of Virginia and Its English and Norman-French Progenitors. San Antonio, Texas. p. 40. Retrieved June 12, 2020 – via Google Books.
- Reitwiesner, William Addams. "Ancestry of Barack Obama". William Addams Reitwiesner Genealogical Services. Washington, DC. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
- "Georgia National Guard correspondence regarding the Atlanta Race Riot". Incoming Correspondence, Adjutant General, Defense, RG 22-1-17, Georgia Archives. Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
- "Joseph M. Terrell". The Sun. Atlanta. November 18, 1912. p. 9. Retrieved June 12, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- "Photograph of the Liberty ship Joseph M. Terrell at the docks of J.A. Jones Construction Company shipyard, Brunswick, Georgia, 1944". Vanishing Georgia. Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
- "Terrell Hall (Milledgeville, Ga.)". Vanishing Georgia. Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
External links
- United States Congress. "Joseph M. Terrell (id: T000131)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Joseph M. Terrell at Find a Grave
Party political offices | ||
---|---|---|
Preceded by Allen D. Candler |
Democratic nominee for Governor of Georgia 1902, 1904 |
Succeeded by M. Hoke Smith |
Political offices | ||
Preceded by Allen D. Candler |
Governor of Georgia 1902–1907 |
Succeeded by Hoke Smith |
U.S. Senate | ||
Preceded by Alexander S. Clay |
U.S. Senator (Class 3) from Georgia 1910–1911 |
Succeeded by Hoke Smith |