# Joseph M. Terrell

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Joseph_M._Terrell
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Joseph_M._Terrell.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_M._Terrell
> Source revision: 1344326253
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

American politician (1861–1912)

"Senator Terrell" redirects here. For other uses, see [Senator Terrell (disambiguation)](/source/Senator_Terrell_(disambiguation)).

Joseph M. Terrell Terrell in 1911 United States Senator from Georgia In office November 17, 1910 – July 14, 1911 Appointed by Joseph Mackey Brown 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 37th Attorney General of Georgia In office 1892–1902 Governor William J. Northen William Yates Atkinson Allen D. Candler Preceded by W.A. Little Succeeded by Boykin Wright Member of the Georgia Senate In office 1890–1892 Member of the Georgia House of Representatives In office 1884–1887 Personal details Born Joseph Meriwether Terrell (1861-06-06)June 6, 1861 Greenville, Georgia, C.S. Died November 17, 1912(1912-11-17) (aged 51) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Party Democratic Spouse Jessie Lee Spivey ​ (m. 1886)​ Signature

**Joseph Meriwether Terrell** (June 6, 1861 – November 17, 1912) was a [United States senator](/source/United_States_Senate) and the [57th governor](/source/List_of_governors_of_Georgia) of [Georgia](/source/Georgia_(U.S._state)).

## Background

Born in [Greenville](/source/Greenville%2C_Georgia), he was the son of Sarah Rebecca (née Anthony) and Dr. Joel Edgar Green Terrell.[1] He attended the common schools, studied law, and was admitted to the [bar](/source/Bar_(law)) 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](/source/English_American) ancestry and of partial Norman descent.[3]

## Career

Terrell was a member of the [Georgia House of Representatives](/source/Georgia_House_of_Representatives) from 1884 to 1887, and a member of the [Georgia Senate](/source/Georgia_Senate) in 1890. He served as state [attorney general](/source/Attorney_general) from 1892 to 1902, and [Governor of Georgia](/source/Governor_of_Georgia) from 1902 to 1907, marred by the [Atlanta race riot](/source/Atlanta_race_riot) of 1906.[4] He resumed the practice of law in [Atlanta](/source/Atlanta), and was appointed to the U.S. Senate as a [Democrat](/source/Democratic_Party_(United_States)) to fill the vacancy caused by the death of [Alexander S. Clay](/source/Alexander_S._Clay), serving from November 17, 1910, to July 14, 1911, when he resigned. Terrell suffered a stroke in February 1911.[5]

## Death and legacy

He again resumed the practice of law in Atlanta although in poor health and died there from [Bright's Disease](/source/Bright's_Disease) on November 17, 1912. He was survived by his wife.[2][5]

Interment was in the City Cemetery, Greenville.

The [Liberty ship](/source/Liberty_ship) *Joseph M. Terrell* was named for him.[6] Terrell Hall, on the campus of Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville, was also named for him.[7]

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Dicken_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Dicken_1-1) 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.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-georgiaencyclopedia.org_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-georgiaencyclopedia.org_2-1) ["Joseph M. Terrell (1861–1912)"](http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2139). *[New Georgia Encyclopedia](/source/New_Georgia_Encyclopedia)*. Retrieved June 12, 2020.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Terrell, Edwin Holland (1909). [*Further Genealogical Notes on the Tyrrell-Terrell Family of Virginia and Its English and Norman-French Progenitors*](https://books.google.com/books?id=AVETAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA40). San Antonio, Texas. p. 40. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781789875539](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781789875539). Retrieved June 12, 2020 – via Google Books. {{[cite book](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Cite_book)}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility ([help](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:CS1_errors#invalid_isbn_date))CS1 maint: location missing publisher ([link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_location_missing_publisher))

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Georgia National Guard correspondence regarding the Atlanta Race Riot"](http://cdm.georgiaarchives.org:2011/cdm/compoundobject/collection/adhoc/id/1174). *Incoming Correspondence, Adjutant General, Defense, RG 22-1-17, Georgia Archives*. Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved June 19, 2016.[*[permanent dead link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Link_rot)*]

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Sun_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Sun_5-1) ["Joseph M. Terrell"](https://www.newspapers.com/clip/53317364/joseph-m-terrell/). *[The Sun](/source/The_Sun_(New_York_City))*. Atlanta. November 18, 1912. p. 9. Retrieved June 12, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Photograph of the Liberty ship Joseph M. Terrell at the docks of J.A. Jones Construction Company shipyard, Brunswick, Georgia, 1944"](https://web.archive.org/web/20191216210146/http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/vsbg/id:jaj074). *Vanishing Georgia*. Digital Library of Georgia. Archived from [the original](http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/vsbg/id:jaj074) on December 16, 2019. Retrieved June 19, 2016.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Terrell Hall (Milledgeville, Ga.)"](http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/larc/id:jlc0325). *Vanishing Georgia*. Digital Library of Georgia. Retrieved June 19, 2016.

## External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Joseph M. Terrell](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Joseph_M._Terrell).

- United States Congress. ["Joseph M. Terrell (id: T000131)"](http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=T000131). *[Biographical Directory of the United States Congress](/source/Biographical_Directory_of_the_United_States_Congress)*.

- [Joseph M. Terrell](https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/7827689) at [Find a Grave](/source/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

v t e Governors of Georgia 1777–present Bulloch Gwinnett Treutlen Houstoun Glascock Cuthbert Wereat Walton Howly George Wells Humphrey Wells Heard Davies Brownson Martin Hall Houstoun Elbert Telfair Mathews Handley Walton Telfair Mathews Irwin Jackson Emanuel Tattnall Milledge Irwin Mitchell Early Mitchell Rabun Talbot Clark Troup Forsyth Gilmer Lumpkin Schley Gilmer McDonald Crawford Towns Cobb H. Johnson J. E. Brown J. Johnson Jenkins Ruger Bullock Conley J. Smith Colquitt Stephens Boynton McDaniel Gordon Northen Atkinson Candler Terrell H. Smith J. M. Brown H. Smith Slaton J. M. Brown Slaton N. Harris Dorsey Hardwick Walker Hardman Russell E. Talmadge Rivers E. Talmadge Arnall Thompson H. Talmadge Griffin Vandiver Sanders Maddox Carter Busbee J. Harris Miller Barnes Perdue Deal Kemp Category

v t e United States senators from Georgia Class 2 Few Jackson Walton Tattnall Baldwin Jones Crawford Bulloch Bibb Troup Forsyth Walker Ware Cobb Prince Troup King Lumpkin Berrien Charlton Toombs H. Miller Norwood B. Hill Barrow A. Colquitt Walsh Bacon West Hardwick Harris Cohen Russell Gambrell Nunn Cleland Chambliss Perdue Ossoff Class 3 Gunn Jackson Milledge Tait Elliott Berrien Forsyth Cuthbert W. Colquitt Johnson Dawson Iverson J. Hill Gordon Brown Gordon Clay Terrell Smith Watson Felton George Talmadge Mattingly Fowler Coverdell Z. Miller Isakson Loeffler Warnock

Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF GND FAST WorldCat National United States People US Congress Other SNAC Yale LUX

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Joseph M. Terrell](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_M._Terrell) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_M._Terrell?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.