History in the News: The Past in the Present (part 2)

A few months ago I wrote a post called "History in the News: The Past in the Present" in which it seemed the past was finding itself in our modern news (click HERE to see it).
Well, recently, a friend of mine posted the following meme on Facebook. I found it to be unbelievable, for we all know about the false information found on Facebook, don't we?

Well, I researched it on my own only to find it to be true! How cool!! Combing through the internet, it seems that England's Daily Mail (?!) had the best and most in depth article.
This is from 2012 but the two grandchildren are still alive as of this writing.
Enjoy - - - - - -

Grandsons of tenth president John Tyler are STILL ALIVE... and were born 140 YEARS after their grandfather

• John Tyler's wife Julia was 30 years his junior
• Their son Lyon Tyler remarried in his 70s and had two sons in 1920s

By Beth Stebner
UPDATED: 15:11 EST, 26 January 2012 
 
John Tyler, the tenth president of the United States, was born in 1790. He grew up on a Virginia plantation, became a lawyer, and went on to the White House after the death of his predecessor, William Henry Harrison in 1841.
In the years leading up to his presidency, horse-drawn carriages were the mode du jour, Arkansas, Michigan, Maine, and Missouri became states, and across the sea, Napoleon Bonaparte was conquering Europe.
But it has been revealed that two of the president’s grandsons are still alive – and were born nearly 140 years after their grandfather was.

The patriarch: US president John Tyler, who was born in 1790, has two living grandsons

Grandsons of a president: Harrison Ruffin Tyler, left, and his brother Lyon Gardiner Tyler Jr., call the tenth president of the United States their grandfather

Lyon Gardiner Tyler Jr. was born in 1924 to Lyon Gardiner Tyler, the son of the late president.
His brother Harrison Ruffin was born four years later, according to records kept by the Sherwood Forest Plantation Foundation, the home of President Tyler.
This extraordinary feat was possible in part because their father had Lyon and Harrison whilst in his 70s.
Lyon Gardiner Tyler, Sr., after all, was born while the nation fought the Civil War.
His two surviving sons were with his second wife, Sue Ruffin, who was born in 1889.
The widower president John Tyler, who was dubbed ‘His Accidency’ for the unusual manner in which he won the presidency, rose to fame from the ‘Tippecanoe and Tyler, Too’ campaign.

Extended family tree: Both President Tyler and his son Lyon were married twice - their second wives, both much younger than their husbands, help explain the incredible time gap

The middle man: Lyon Tyler, Sr., was born in 1853, remarried in 1923, and had two sons within the next five years

He married Julia Gardiner, a woman from a wealthy Long Island family, on July 23, 1844.
She was 30 years his junior at 24. He was the first president to marry while holding office.

The couple had seven children, added to eight more from President Tyler’s first marriage, making his the most prolific family to inhabit the White House.
Lyon, Sr. had six children, according to his son’s biography. His son followed in his father’s footsteps and became an attorney, practicing law in Tennessee.

Loving wife and mother: First Lady Julia Gardiner Tyler married the president at only 24, though he was 30 years her senior

Harrison, meanwhile, has led several historical tours, and was the keynote speaker for the 250th Jubilee of the colonial settlement of Jamestown. 
The three generations have seen a multitude of change. In 1842, the word ‘dinosaur’ was coined and three years later, Charles Darwin published Voyage of the Beagle.
In Lyon Tyler's era, Theodore Roosevelt held office, the United Postal Service was founded, and a stone was laid to begin construction of the Washington National Cathedral.
His grandsons have seen the advent of airplanes, television, and the internet.
  
A FAMILY SPANNING THREE CENTURIES: TIMELINE OF JOHN TYLER AND HIS PROGENIES

29 March 1790: John Tyler born in Greenway, Virginia
1807: graduated from William and Mary; Passed the Bar Exam and became lawyer two years later
March 1813: Married first wife Letitia Christian
1811-1839: Served as United States representative, state governor and senator 
1841: Became president, known as ‘His Accidency’ after the sudden death of William Henry Harrison
1853: Lyon Gardiner Tyler born; becomes historian
18 January 1862: John Tyler dies, aged 71
10 July 1889: Julia Gardiner Tyler dies, aged 69
1923: Lyon Gardiner Tyler, Sr., marries second wife Sue Ruffin, two years after first wife dies
1925: Lyon Gardiner Tyler Jr. born
1928: Harrison Ruffin Tyler born
12 February 1935: Lyon Gardiner Tyler Sr. dies, aged 81

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So, there you have it. Pretty cool, huh?

Yeah...I thought so, too!
See you next time!

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