Tom Jefferson Terral
| Thomas Jefferson Terral | |
|---|---|
| 27th Governor of Arkansas | |
|
In office January 13, 1925 – January 11, 1927 |
|
| Preceded by | Thomas Chipman McRae |
| Succeeded by | John Ellis Martineau |
| Arkansas Secretary of State | |
|
In office 1917–1921 |
|
| Governor | Charles Hillman Brough |
| Preceded by | Earle W. Hodges |
| Succeeded by | Ira C. Hopper |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
December 21, 1882 Union Parish, Louisiana, USA |
| Died | March 9, 1946 (aged 63) Little Rock, Pulaski County Arkansas |
| Resting place | Roselawn Memorial Park in Little Rock, Arkansas |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Eula Terral Terral (same maiden and married names) |
| Children | No children |
| Alma mater | University of Arkansas School of Law |
| Profession | Attorney |
Thomas Jefferson Terral (December 21, 1882 – March 9, 1946) was the 27th Governor of Arkansas.
Terral was born in Union Parish in northern Louisiana. He attended the University of Kentucky at Lexington, Kentucky, and transferred to the University of Arkansas School of Law in Fayetteville, from which he graduated in 1910. He was admitted to the bar in 1910, and established a private law practice in Little Rock. He also worked as a school teacher.
From 1911 to 1915, Terral worked as an assistant secretary of the Arkansas Senate where he learned the mechanics of state politics. In addition to the Senate position, Terral served as deputy state superintendent of public instruction from 1912 to 1916. These dual positions allowed Terral to assembly a range of statewide political contacts.
In 1916, Terral was elected Arkansas Secretary of State and served two two-year terms from 1917 to 1921. He ran unsuccessfully for governor in the 1920 Democratic primary, having lost to Thomas Chipman McRae.
Preparing to run again for governor in 1924, Terral joined the Ku Klux Klan in Morehouse Parish, which adjoins his native Union Parish. Apparently, he was rejected for Klan membership by various chapters in Arkansas but wanted to show his commitment to the organization as he mounted his gubernatorial race. In the Democratic primary, prior to the institution of runoff elections in Arkansas, Terral defeated several opponents, including future Lieutenant Governor William Lee Cazort of Johnson County, the original choice of the Ku Klux Klan hierarchy. Terral also defeated John Ellis Martineau, who came back in 1926 to unseat Terral in the primary. In the general election held that year in October 1924, Terral defeated Republican John W. Grabiel, an Ohio native and an attorney from Fayetteville who had also run unsuccessfully against Governor McRae in 1922. Terral received 99,598 votes (79.8 percent) to Grabiel's 25,152 (20.2 percent). Terral served as governor from 1925 to 1927.
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