There were several Terral families in Bowie County by 1880, and one report says there are 34 different ways to spell the name Terral.  John Linsom Terral did leave a family Bible with the name spelled Terral, so this is the spelling used here.

John L Terral was born in Covington County, Mississippi on February, 1829.  His parents were Joshua and Susan M Lann Terral from South Carolina.  Joshua Terral was the first elected police official in Jasper County, Mississippi.  There was an Old Salem Community and Cemetery back in Jasper County, Mississippi and John L Terral came to the Old Salem Community here in Bowie County.  He received a land grant from Governor Richard Coke for one hundred sixty acres on February 16, 1875.

John L Terral married Huldah Furnace in 1851 in Walker County, Alabama.  They had a large farm in Choctaw County, Alabama.  The Civil War brought ruin to the Southern planters.  John L and Huldah left their land to their former slaves and went back to his family in Jasper County, Mississippi.  His sister, Susanna, married L W Wimberly and they moved to Bowie County before 1870.  Maybe they sent back good reports.  The Terral clan decided to move west.

In 1872 the Terral families in Jasper County, Mississippi made up a train of thirty wagons pulled by teams of oxen.  There were forty-two men and boys in the group.  Some of these people settled in Arkansas and some in Louisiana.  Some settled in Bowie County and some went further west.  The family tells an unusual story about the trip.  No, they didn't walk on water, but you are getting close.  They drove across the Red River.  It became extremely cold about the time they were ready to cross the Red River and it froze completely over and they were able to drive across it.  That's the story they have handed down.

John L and Huldah Terral had twelve children, the first eleven of who were boys.
 1. George Washington, 1852-1906, in Walker County, Alabama
 2. Edward William, 1854-55, in Walker County, Alabama
 3. Joshua Millard, 1856-88, in Walker County, Alabama, married Polly Braswell
 4. John James, 1858-58, in Walker County, Alabama
 5. Benjamin Franklin, 1860-1919, in Choctaw County, Alabama, married Sara F Cabler
 6. Stonewall Jackson, 1862-90, in Choctaw County, Alabama, married Frances Orr
 7. Joseph Thomas, 1864-1934, in Choctaw County, Alabama, married Alcy Elizabeth Brewer
 8. Samual Newton, 1867-1939, in Choctaw County, Alabama, married Minnie Askew
 9. Richard Furnace, 1870-1957, in Jasper County, Mississippi, married Maggie Alice Harper
10. Hopkins Blackhead, 1870-1845, a twin of Richard, married Martha Etta Duren
11. James, 1873-1957, in Bowie County, Texas, married Roxana Graham
12. Huldah Susan, 1875-99, in Bowie County, Texas, did not marry.