John Tyler:
A Vice Presidential Unit

John Tyler was born in Charles City County, Virginia on March 29, 1790. At age 12, he entered the college of William & Mary and graduated when he was 17. Following his father, the governor of Virginia, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1809. In 1811, he became a member of the Virginia House of Delegates in and in 1816 was named a member of the council of state. He then was elected as a Democratic-Republican to the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Congress and served from December 17, 1816, to March 4, 1821. He declined renomination to Congress and served as the governor of Virginia from December 10, 1825 – March 4, 1827. From March 3, 1835 – December 6, 1835, he served as the President pro tempore of the Senate under Andrew Jackson. Then from March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841, he became the 10th Vice President of the United States under William Henry Harrison. In April 4, 1841, he became the first Vice President who was elevated to the President’s office because Harrison’s death. This made his critics to call him “His Accidency”. On January 18, 1862, he died from a stroke and he now is buried Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia.

Political Party: Independent

Years Served: March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841

President: William Henry Harrison

Name of his parents: John Tyler, Sr. and Mary Armistead Tyler

Wife’s name: first wife - Letitia Christian Tyler, second wife - Julia Gardiner Tyler

Education: William & Mary

Physical Stature: 5 feet 8 inches

State of Birth: Virginia

Trivia Questions:

1) What instrument could he play?
Violin

2. Why did many people call him his Accidency?
Due to his ascension to the presidency

3. What were John Tyler’s last words?
Perhaps, it is best…

4. How many children did he have? fourteen

Of Note:

- His father also served as a governor in Virginia.
- He is a great great great uncle to Harry Truman.
- “Wealth can only be accumulated by the earnings of industry and the savings of frugality”
- “Popularity, I have always thought, may aptly be compared to a coquette - the more you woo her, the more apt is she to elude your embrace.”

========================================================