Biographical Sketch of Col. John F. Tyler, St. Joseph, Buchanan County, MO >From "History of Buchanan County, Missouri, Published 1881, St. Joseph Steam Printing Company, Printers, Binders, Etc., St. Joseph, Missouri. ********************************************************************** Col. John F. Tyler was born in Lee County, Virginia, September 12, 1838. His father, Henry C. Tyler, was a merchant of Jonesville, and also oper- ated stores at other points in Lee County. His mother's maiden name was Fulkerson, John F. was their only child. He was educated at the Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, at that time superintended by Gen. Francis H. Smith. He was graduated here ninth of a class of twenty nine in 1859. In the same year he moved to Missouri, settling first at Lexington, where he engaged in teaching till the breaking out of the civil war. During the period that he was teaching he studied law in the office of Hon. John F. Ryland, of Lexington. He was a staunch Union man, and as such render- ed himself so unpopular with the dominant party in that town that he was forced to enter the Army. He enlisted in the Fourteenth Missouri Vol- unteers, commanded by Col. White. He was almost immediately after elected Major in that regiment, and was subsequently captured with Milligan's command in the battle of Lexington before being mustered into service. On being exchanged he was appointed Aid-de-Camp, with the rank of Major, on Gen. Schofield's staff. In 1862, he was pro- moted to the grade of Lieutenant Colonel of the First Regiment of infantry of the Missouri State Militia. He was afterwards promoted to the rank of Colonel of this regiment, and remained in the service till near the close of the war, when he moved to St. Joseph and engaged in merchandising. He afterwards farmed for a short time. He has, for some time past, and is at present engaged in the practice of law and largely in the real estate business in St. Joseph. He was married on November 9, 1862, to Miss Jane E. Spratt, of Lexington, Missouri. They have four children, all of whom are dead. Col. Tyler is a member of the Presbyterian Church, and has been, for many years, an active Sunday School worker in the same. He has superintended some of the largest and most prosperous schools of this character in the city; and it was through his efforts that the present flourishing Mission Sabbath School of South St. Joseph was organized. In politics he has always been a Democrat. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: Penny Harrell ====================================================================