Latest news with #LyonGardinerTyler
New York Times
5 days ago
- General
- New York Times
Harrison Ruffin Tyler, Grandson of the 10th President, Is Dead at 96
Harrison Ruffin Tyler, the last surviving grandson of John Tyler, the 10th president of the United States, who was born just after George Washington became president 236 years ago and who served in the White House from 1841 to 1845, died on Sunday at his home in Richmond, Va. He was 96. His death was confirmed by Annique Dunning, the executive director of Sherwood Forest Plantation, a private foundation established by the Tyler family. Mr. Tyler suffered a series of small strokes starting in 2012 and was later diagnosed with dementia. In recent years, his son William Bouknight Tyler oversaw the James River plantation that had been his family's ancestral home. Mr. Tyler, a retired businessman, and his older brother, Lyon Gardiner Tyler Jr., who died at age 95 in 2020, were sons of Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr. (1853-1935), a longtime president of the College of William & Mary. Their grandfather was the U.S. president who pushed for the annexation of Texas as American expansion moved west, but he is perhaps best known for the Whig Party's memorable 1840 presidential campaign slogan, 'Tippecanoe and Tyler Too.' In a remarkable instance of successive longevities and late-in-life paternities, the Tyler family produced a genealogical marvel, if not a singularity: three generations that spanned nearly the entire history of the American experience. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Washington Post
5 days ago
- General
- Washington Post
Harrison Ruffin Tyler, preserver of Virginia history and grandson of 10th US president, dies at 96
CHARLES CITY, Va. — Harrison Ruffin Tyler, the last living grandson of U.S. President John Tyler born 83 years after his grandfather left the White House in 1845, died. He was 96. The cause of Tyler's death on Sunday was not immediately released. John Tyler was 63 years old when Harrison Tyler's father, Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr., was born. And Harrison Ruffin Tyler was born in 1928 when that father was 75 years old and the presidential grandfather had been dead for more than 60 years.
Associated Press
5 days ago
- General
- Associated Press
Harrison Ruffin Tyler, preserver of Virginia history and grandson of 10th US president, dies at 96
CHARLES CITY, Va. (AP) — Harrison Ruffin Tyler, the last living grandson of U.S. President John Tyler born 83 years after his grandfather left the White House in 1845, died. He was 96. The cause of Tyler's death on Sunday was not immediately released. John Tyler was 63 years old when Harrison Tyler's father, Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr., was born. And Harrison Ruffin Tyler was born in 1928 when that father was 75 years old and the presidential grandfather had been dead for more than 60 years. The grandson was known for preserving his grandfather's plantation and nearby Civil War fort. In a statement, Annique Dunning, the executive director of Sherwood Forest, a national landmark of President Tyler's residence, said the president's grandson, whose brother died in 2020, was a 'beloved father and grandfather, he will be missed immeasurably by those who survive him.' 'He will be remembered for his considerable charm, generosity and unfailing good humor by all who knew him,' Dunning said. Over the course of his life, Tyler preserved Sherwood Forest, his grandfather's plantation that enslaved dozens of people, including 43 people in 1860, just before the Civil War began. The grandson also helped restore and maintain Fort Pocahontas, a Union fort during the Civil War. Tyler's grandfather was a Democrat nicknamed the 'Accidental President' after unexpectedly assuming the presidency when President William Henry Harrison died in office. President Tyler was the first vice president to gain control of the White House in the wake of a death. The University of Virginia's Miller Center described the president as 'the last gasp of the Old Virginia aristocracy in the White House.' He had married twice and had 15 children, including Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr. The time between the president's birth and his grandson's death spans 235 years.
The Independent
5 days ago
- General
- The Independent
Harrison Ruffin Tyler, preserver of Virginia history and grandson of 10th US president, dies at 96
Harrison Ruffin Tyler, the last living grandson of U.S. President John Tyler born 83 years after his grandfather left the White House in 1845, died. He was 96. The cause of Tyler's death on Sunday was not immediately released. John Tyler was 63 years old when Harrison Tyler's father, Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr., was born. And Harrison Ruffin Tyler was born in 1928 when that father was 75 years old and the presidential grandfather had been dead for more than 60 years. The grandson was known for preserving his grandfather's plantation and nearby Civil War fort. In a statement, Annique Dunning, the executive director of Sherwood Forest, a national landmark of President Tyler's residence, said the president's grandson, whose brother died in 2020, was a 'beloved father and grandfather, he will be missed immeasurably by those who survive him.' 'He will be remembered for his considerable charm, generosity and unfailing good humor by all who knew him,' Dunning said. Over the course of his life, Tyler preserved Sherwood Forest, his grandfather's plantation that enslaved dozens of people, including 43 people in 1860, just before the Civil War began. The grandson also helped restore and maintain Fort Pocahontas, a Union fort during the Civil War. Tyler's grandfather was a Democrat nicknamed the 'Accidental President' after unexpectedly assuming the presidency when President William Henry Harrison died in office. President Tyler was the first vice president to gain control of the White House in the wake of a death. The University of Virginia 's Miller Center described the president as 'the last gasp of the Old Virginia aristocracy in the White House.' He had married twice and had 15 children, including Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr. The time between the president's birth and his grandson's death spans 235 years.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Grandson of 10th U.S. President Has Died at 96 Years Old
There have been nearly 50 presidents in America's history, and one of the last living relatives of one of the first has died. Harrison Ruffin Tyler, the grandson of the 10th president John Tyler, died on Sunday at the age of 96. Tyler was the son of the president's 13th child Lyon Gardiner Tyler. Harrison was born on November 9, 1928 - when his father was already 75 years old. Children being born later in their parents' lives was a tradition in the family, as Lyon was born when John was 63 years old. Tyler's presidency began under relatively unprecedented terms. He joined the presidential ticket as William Henry Harrison' after being born into a Virginia family that owned slaves. When Harrison died only 31 days into his term, Tyler took office. He held the presidency from 1841 through 1845, but the Whig Party did not nominate him for re-election. The party chose Henry Clay, who would go on to lose to Democrat James K. Polk. Tyler's 15 children were the most fathered by any president. He had eight with his first wife Letitia Christian and seven with his second wife Julia Gardiner. Tyler married Gardiner during his presidency in 1844, just two years after Christian died of a stroke. Harrison Ruffin Tyler became a minor celebrity during his life, as he was invited to meet then-sitting president Franklin D. Roosevelt at the White House at just eight years old. Lady Nancy Astor, a former member British Parliament, paid for Harrison's college tuition at William & Mary despite the two never meeting. He was also notable for being a direct descendant of Pocahontas. Tyler founded ChemTreat, an industrial water treatment company, with business partner William P. Simmons in the late 1960s. The company served top clients like Kraft and Philip Morris. Later in his life, Tyler sought to restore significant historical sites and artifacts such as Fort Pocahontas and one of his grandfather's former homes. That home, Sherwood Forest Plantation, is now open to the public and operated by a foundation. Tyler and his late wife worked to restore the plantation. He is survived by three children and several grandchildren. Rest in peace to Harrison Ruffin Tyler, and we send condolences to his family, friends and loved ones following his death. Grandson of 10th U.S. President Has Died at 96 Years Old first appeared on Men's Journal on May 29, 2025
