Sharon Tyndale (January 19, 1816 – April 29, 1871) was an American politician and designer who was the Secretary of State of

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

, from 1865 to 1869. His tenure is notable for his redesign of the

Great Seal of the State of Illinois The Great Seal of the Illinois, State of Illinois is the official emblem of the state, and signifies the official nature of a document produced by the state of Illinois. The flag of the state of Illinois consists of the seal of Illinois on a wh ...

Background

Born in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, Tyndale moved to

Belleville, Illinois Belleville is a city and the county seat of St. Clair County, Illinois, coterminous with the now defunct Belleville Township. It is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Belleville and the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. The p ...

in 1833 and worked in the mercantile business. He moved back to Philadelphia and worked in the mercantile business with his father. In 1845, he moved to

Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is the county seat of Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and the largest city on the Illinois River. As of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census, the city had a population of 113,150. It is the principal city of the Peoria ...

and studied to be a civil engineer. In 1857, Tyndale was elected County Surveyor of

St. Clair County, Illinois St. Clair County is the oldest county in Illinois; its western border is formed by the Mississippi River, bordering Missouri. It is a part of the Metro East in southern Illinois. At the 2020 United States census, it had a population of 257,400 ...

. President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

appointed Tyndale postmaster of Belleville, Illinois in 1861. From 1865 to 1869, Tyndale served as

Illinois Secretary of State The Secretary of State of Illinois is one of the six elected executive state offices of the government of Illinois, and one of the 47 secretaries of states in the United States. The Illinois Secretary of State keeps the state records, laws, libr ...

, as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

. After Tyndale left office, he stayed in

Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat and largest city of Sangamon County. The city's population was 114,394 at the 2020 census, which makes it the state's seventh most-populous city, the second largest o ...

and worked for Gilman, Clinton and Springfield Railroad doing a survey. His brother was

Hector Tyndale Hector Tyndale (a.k.a. George Hector Tyndale) was a Union general during the American Civil War rising to the rank of Brevet Major General of Volunteers. He notably led brigades at the battles of Antietam and Wauhatchie. Apart from the war Tynda ...

, a United States Army officer.

Seal of the State of Illinois

In 1867, Tyndale himself requested that the

Illinois General Assembly The Illinois General Assembly is the legislature of the U.S. state of Illinois. It has two chambers, the Illinois House of Representatives and the Illinois Senate. The General Assembly was created by the first state constitution adopted in 181 ...

authorize a redesign of the seal, with one key suggestion, that the words of the motto (''State Sovereignty, National Union'') be reversed (to ''National Union, State Sovereignty''). The legislature did authorize the redesign but specifically required the redesign to maintain the motto's word order. Then they gave Tyndale responsibility for the redesign. Tyndale overhauled the Great Seal, but he did so in a manner that appeared to thwart the legislature's intent. His new seal featured a ''twisted'' banner, which caused the word "sovereignty" to be upside down, albeit in the order required by the legislature. Tyndale's banner has remained in place, with only minor changes, since 1868.

Assassination

Two years after leaving office, Tyndale was assassinated outside his home, in Springfield, Illinois, on April 29, 1871. His killer was never identified.Murder of Sharon Tyndale
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Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tyndale, Sharon 1816 births 1871 deaths 1871 murders in the United States 19th-century American politicians American surveyors Businesspeople from Illinois Businesspeople from Philadelphia County officials in Illinois Illinois Republicans People from Belleville, Illinois People murdered in Illinois Politicians from Philadelphia Politicians from Springfield, Illinois Secretaries of State of Illinois Unsolved murders in the United States 19th-century American businesspeople Illinois postmasters

Background

Seal of the State of Illinois

Assassination

See also

Notes