Born in Charlottesville, Virginia, Robert Terrell graduated from Harvard College in 1884 and then attended law school at Howard University. He taught in public schools in Washington, D.C., for five years. He then resigned to work as chief clerk in the office of the auditor of the U.S. Treasury. He practiced law in D.C. from 1892 to 1898, when he left to teach school again and serve as principal of M Street High School. In 1901 Terrell was appointed justice of the peace for Washington, D.C. In 1910 President Taft nominated him to be a municipal court judge. Terrell served in that capacity until 1925 and was also on the faculty of Howard University's law school.

Source:
Robinson, Aubrey. Dictionary of American Negro Biography . 1 st ed. New York : W.W. Norton & Company, 1982. pgs. 585-586.