Robert Ogden Tyler was born on December 31, 1831, in Hunter, New York, to Frederick and Sophia Tyler. His father was a coal merchant who owned $1,000 of real estate by 1850. The family moved to Hartford, Connecticut, around 1838, and he grew up and attended school there. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1853.

 

He received an appointment as a brevet 2^nd lieutenant in the United States artillery, and he spent the next few years in California, the Oregon Territory, and the Utah Territory. He was promoted to 1^st lieutenant in September 1855. By 1860, he was living in West Newton, Minnesota, and he owned $150 of personal property.

 

In April 1861, he was part of the expedition to resupply Fort Sumter, and he witnessed the Confederate bombardment. He was promoted to captain and assistant quartermaster in May 1861. In September 1861, he became colonel of the 4^th Connecticut Infantry, which was later redesignated the 1^st Connecticut Heavy Artillery. The regiment took part in the Peninsula campaign and the Seven Days’ Battles. He was promoted to brigadier general in November 1862. He participated in the Battle of Fredericksburg, the Battle of Chancellorsville, the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Overland Campaign. He was severely wounded in the ankle during the Battle of Cold Harbor, and he spent the next six months recovering. He spent the final months of the war in Philadelphia, serving in an administrative role.

 

He remained in the army after the war, and he received a promotion to lieutenant colonel. He spent the next few years in Louisville, Kentucky; San Francisco, California; New York City, New York; and Boston, Massachusetts. The war, however, had permanently damaged his health. He died of “neuralgia of the heart” in Boston on December 1, 1874.

 

Image: Robert O. Tyler (courtesy Wikicommons)

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