Tyler is a city in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
and the largest city and
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of
Smith County.
It is also the largest city in
Northeast Texas
Northeast Texas is a cultural and geographic region in the northeast corner of the U.S. state of Texas. Geographically centered on two metropolitan areas strung along Interstate 20— Tyler in the west and Longview/ Marshall to the east, the area ...
. With a 2020 census population of 105,995,
Tyler was the
33rd most populous city in Texas and
299th in the United States. It is the principal city of the
Greater Tyler metropolitan statistical area, which is the
198th most populous metropolitan area in the
U.S.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
and
16th in Texas after
Waco
Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the st ...
and the
College Station–Bryan areas, with a population of 233,479 in 2020.
The city is named for
John Tyler
John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth president of the United States, serving from 1841 to 1845, after briefly holding office as the tenth vice president in 1841. He was elected vice president on the 1840 Whig tick ...
, the tenth
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
. In 1985, the international
Adopt-a-Highway movement began in Tyler. After appeals from local
Texas Department of Transportation
The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT ) is a government agency in the American state of Texas. Though the public face of the agency is generally associated with the construction and maintenance of the state's immense state highway system ...
officials, the local
Civitan International
Civitan International, based in Birmingham, Alabama, is an association of community service clubs founded in 1917. The organization aims "to build good citizenship by providing a volunteer organization of clubs dedicated to serving individual an ...
chapter adopted a two-mile (three kilometer) stretch of
U.S. Route 69 to maintain. Drivers and other motorists traveling on this segment of U.S. 69 (between Tyler and nearby
Lindale) will see brown road signs that read, "First Adopt-A-Highway in the World".
Tyler is known as the "Rose Capital of America" (also the "Rose City" and the "Rose Capital of the World"), a
nickname
A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...
it earned from a long history of
rose
A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
production, cultivation, and processing. It is home to the largest
rose garden
A rose garden or rosarium is a garden or park, often open to the public, used to present and grow various types of garden roses, and sometimes rose species. Most often it is a section of a larger garden. Designs vary tremendously and roses m ...
in the United States, a 14-
acre public garden complex that has over 38,000 rose bushes of at least 500 different varieties.
The Tyler Rose Garden is also home to the annual
Texas Rose Festival which attracts thousands of tourists each October.
As Northeast Texas and Smith County's major economic, educational, financial, medical and cultural hub, Tyler is host to more than 20,000
higher-education students; the
University of Texas at Tyler
The University of Texas at Tyler (UT Tyler) is a public research university in Tyler, Texas. Founded in 1971, it is a part of the University of Texas System.
UT Tyler consists of five professional colleges and one traditional college of arts and ...
; a university health science center; and regional hospital systems. It is also the headquarters for
Brookshire Grocery Company, Cavender's, Southside Bank, and
Synthesizers.com. Other corporations with major presence within the city and surrounding area include
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile te ...
,
T-Mobile US
T-Mobile US, Inc. is an American wireless network operator headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas and Bellevue, Washington, U.S. Its largest shareholder is a multinational telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom AG, which , holds 48.4 pe ...
,
Cricket Wireless
Cricket Wireless is an American prepaid wireless service provider, owned by AT&T. It provides wireless services to ten million subscribers in the United States. Cricket Wireless was founded in March 1999 by Leap Wireless International. AT&T ac ...
and
Metro by T-Mobile,
Chase Bank
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., doing business as Chase Bank or often as Chase, is an American national bank headquartered in New York City, that constitutes the consumer and commercial banking subsidiary of the U.S. multinational banking and fin ...
,
BBVA
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, S.A. (), better known by its initialism BBVA, is a Spanish multinational financial services company based in Madrid and Bilbao, Spain. It is one of the largest financial institutions in the world, and is present ...
,
Best Buy, and
Walmart
Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquarter ...
. Tyler is also home to the
Caldwell Zoo and
Broadway Square Mall.
History
Legal recognition of Tyler was initiated by an act of the
state legislature on 11 April 1846. The Texas government created Smith County and authorized a county seat.
The first plat designated a 28-block town site centered by a main square within a tract acquired by Smith County on 6 February 1847. The new town was named for
President John Tyler, who advocated for the
annexation of Texas
The Texas annexation was the 1845 annexation of the Republic of Texas into the United States. Texas was admitted to the Union as the 28th state on December 29, 1845.
The Republic of Texas declared independence from the Republic of Mexico ...
by the United States. A log building on the square's north side served as a courthouse and public meeting hall until a brick courthouse displaced it in . On 29 January 1850, Tyler was incorporated. Early religious and social institutions included the First Baptist church and a Methodist church, a
Masonic lodge
A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...
and an
Odd Fellows lodge, and Tyler's first newspaper.
Though Tyler's early economy from – was based on agriculture, it was also well-diversified during this period. Logging was a second major industry, while complementary manufacturing included metalworking, milling wood, and leather tanning. As the seat of Smith County, the town also benefited from government activity. The local agricultural economy relied on
slave labor
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
before the
Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
. In 1860, the population of enslaved people in Smith County was 4,982, the 4th most in east Texas.
By 1860, Tyler held over 1,000 enslaved persons, which represented 35 percent of the town's population. There was strong support for
secession
Secession is the withdrawal of a group from a larger entity, especially a political entity, but also from any organization, union or military alliance. Some of the most famous and significant secessions have been: the former Soviet republics le ...
and the
Confederacy within Tyler, as a high percentage of its residents voted for secession and many of its men joined the
Confederate Army. The town was secure enough for the Confederate States of America to establish the largest ordinance plant in
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
. In 1870, Bonner and Williams established Tyler's first bank. Though both the
Texas and Pacific Railroad
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by b ...
and the International Railroad (Texas) eschewed routes through Tyler, the town gained an important rail connection when the
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...
and Great Northern built a branch line in 1874.
Toward the end of the nineteenth century, fruit orchards emerged as an important business in the regional economy. Eighty percent of the county's agricultural revenue derived from cotton as it persisted as the dominant crop in the first decades of the
twentieth century
The 20th (twentieth) century began on
January 1, 1901 (1901, MCMI), and ended on December 31, 2000 (2000, MM). The 20th century was dominated by significant events that defined the modern era: Spanish flu, Spanish flu pandemic, World War I and ...
. Peaches were the principal fruit crop as the county fruit tree inventory surpassed one million by 1900. Disease struck the peach trees, though, and local farmers moved toward growing roses by the 1920s. Twenty years later, most of the U.S. rose supply originated in the Tyler area.
On 29 October 1895, an African American suspect named Robert Henry Hillard was burned at the stake in the Smith County Courthouse Square for the alleged murder of a nineteen-year-old white woman.
[E. R. Bills. ''Black Holocaust: The Paris Horror and a Legacy of Texas Terror''. Fort Worth, Texas: Eakin Press, 2015] Denied a trial and due process, Hillard was taken from law enforcement personnel by a white mob. Hillard's executioners were never punished. Later, two entrepreneurs combined photographs from the actual lynching with others staged with actors and sold the 16-image production as a stereographic set. One of the original sets sits in the
United States Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...
.
In 1912, Dan Davis, an African-American man suspected of attacking a sixteen-year-old white girl named Carrie Johnson, was burned at the stake in the Smith County Courthouse Square.
In , the University of Texas system established the
University of Texas at Tyler
The University of Texas at Tyler (UT Tyler) is a public research university in Tyler, Texas. Founded in 1971, it is a part of the University of Texas System.
UT Tyler consists of five professional colleges and one traditional college of arts and ...
and
Broadway Square Mall opened in . By 1980, the population grew to 70,508 and the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler ( la, Dioecesis Tylerensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in eastern Texas in the United States. The episcopal see is Tyler, and the Cathedral of the Immaculat ...
and East Texas Islamic Society were established in the following years.
During the
2010 East Texas church burnings, two Tyler churches were destroyed, and
historic preservation
Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK), is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philos ...
city planning began in 2016 as the population increased and the city continued development.
Geography
Tyler is located at and is above
sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...
.
The city of Tyler is in the
Southern United States
The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...
, in
Northeast Texas
Northeast Texas is a cultural and geographic region in the northeast corner of the U.S. state of Texas. Geographically centered on two metropolitan areas strung along Interstate 20— Tyler in the west and Longview/ Marshall to the east, the area ...
. It is sometimes considered part of the wider
Ark-La-Tex
The Ark-La-Tex (a portmanteau of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas; also stylized as Arklatex or ArkLaTex) is a socio-economic tri-state region where the Southern U.S. states of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas join together. The region contains por ...
region where
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
, and Texas meet. The city is approximately from
Longview; from
Marshall
Marshall may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria
Canada
* Marshall, Saskatchewan
* The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia
Liberia
* Marshall, Liberia
Marshall Islands
* Marshall Islands, an i ...
; from
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
; from
Texarkana; from the state capital of
Austin; and from
Shreveport, Louisiana.
Tyler is the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of
Smith County, and is surrounded by many suburban communities, including
Whitehouse Whitehouse may refer to:
People
* Charles S. Whitehouse (1921-2001), American diplomat
* Cornelius Whitehouse (1796–1883), English engineer and inventor
* E. Sheldon Whitehouse (1883-1965), American diplomat
* Elliott Whitehouse (born 1993), ...
,
Lindale,
New Chapel Hill,
Bullard,
Edom
Edom (; Edomite: ; he, אֱדוֹם , lit.: "red"; Akkadian: , ; Ancient Egyptian: ) was an ancient kingdom in Transjordan, located between Moab to the northeast, the Arabah to the west, and the Arabian Desert to the south and east.N ...
,
Brownsboro,
Kilgore Kilgore may refer to:
Fictional characters
* Kilgore Trout, a recurring character in the novels of Kurt Vonnegut
* Lt. Colonel Bill Kilgore, a character in the Francis Ford Coppola movie ''Apocalypse Now''
* Teddybear Kilgore (AKA Kilgour), a cha ...
,
Flint
Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and sta ...
, and
Chandler. According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the city has an area of , of which is land and is covered by water. Tyler is the principal city of the
Greater Tyler metropolitan area, and a principal city in the Tyler–Longview area, a
conurbation of the Tyler and
Longview metropolitan and combined statistical areas.
Cityscape
Tyler has a modest skyline and downtown area. Its downtown has a unique rustic architecture, mainly in
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
and
neoclassical styles. Many architectural structures in central Tyler date from the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Modernist
Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...
and
postmodernist
Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by skepticism toward the " grand narratives" of modern ...
era structures are also present throughout the cityscape.
Central Tyler is anchored by Brick Streets Historic District and Charnwood Residential Historic District, areas characterized by dense retail, restaurants, nightlife, and historic landmarks. Brick Streets Historic District is the largest geographic area of Tyler. It encompasses 29 blocks and primarily consists of buildings constructed in the 1900s. The district area is predominantly residential though it sometimes serves as a mix-use district. Brick Streets Historic District has brick-paved streets and stone-lined drainage channels. Nearby, Charnwood is Tyler's first historic district. It comprises 12 blocks of late 19th and early 20th century architecture.
Climate
Tyler experiences
weather
Weather is the state of the atmosphere, describing for example the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloud cover, cloudy. On Earth, most weather phenomena occur in the lowest layer of the planet's atmos ...
typical of
East Texas
East Texas is a broadly defined cultural, geographic, and ecological region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Texas that comprises most of 41 counties. It is primarily divided into Northeast and Southeast Texas. Most of the region cons ...
, which is unpredictable, especially in the spring. All of East Texas has the
humid subtropical climate typical of the
American South.
Severe thunderstorms with heavy rain,
hail, damaging winds and
tornado
A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...
es occur in the area during the spring and summer months. Summer months are hot and humid, with maximum temperatures exceeding an average of 91 days per year, with high to very high relative average humidity.
The record high for Tyler is , which occurred in . The record low for Tyler is , which occurred on 18 January 1930 and again on 16 February 2021 during the
February 2021 North American cold wave
The February 2021 North American cold wave was an extreme weather event that brought record low temperatures to a significant portion of Canada, the United States and parts of northern Mexico during the first half of February 2021. The cold was ...
.
Demographics
With a population of 2,423 at the
1880 United States census
The United States census of 1880 conducted by the Census Bureau during June 1880 was the tenth United States census.[Northeast Texas
Northeast Texas is a cultural and geographic region in the northeast corner of the U.S. state of Texas. Geographically centered on two metropolitan areas strung along Interstate 20— Tyler in the west and Longview/ Marshall to the east, the area ...](_blank)
, and
33rd most populous in Texas as of 2020. Having a census-tabulated citywide population of 105,995 at the 2020 census,
its
metropolitan statistical area
In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...
became the largest in the region, followed by the
Longview metropolitan area. The Tyler metropolitan area had 233,479 residents in 2020,
and the Tyler–Longview area had an estimated population of 371,015 in 2018. When the U.S. Census Bureau released population estimates for 2021, Tyler was estimated to have a population of 107,192 as of July 1, 2021.
Among the city's growing population, there were 46,320 households and 43,733 housing units. Of the units at the 2019 American Community Survey, 37,504 were occupied and the majority were
single-unit detached homes. Tylerites had a home-ownership rate of 51.7%, and renters occupied 48.3% of the housing units from 2014 to 2019's census estimates. Owner-occupied housing units had a median cost of $164,700, and the median cost with a mortgage was $1,408 while houses without a mortgage had a median cost of $487; renters paid a median of $1,011 a month, and 1,148 rental-units had no rent paid among the population. Overall, the city of Tyler is more affordable than nearby
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
.
A predominantly
middle-class community, the city of Tyler had a
median income of $52,294 and
mean income of $75,349. Families had a median income of $66,579; married-couple families $85,181; and non-family households $32,263. Down from a poverty rate of 16.7% in 2018, approximately 12.6% of the population lived at or below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
in 2019.
Race and ethnicity
As of the
2020 United States census
The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...
, there were 105,995 people, 37,114 households, and 23,081 families residing in the city. According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the city has also diversified from being historically dominated by
non-Hispanic whites
Non-Hispanic whites or Non-Latino whites are Americans who are classified as "white", and are not of Hispanic (also known as "Latino") heritage. The United States Census Bureau defines ''white'' to include European Americans, Middle Eastern Ame ...
to being increasingly multiracial. Immigration and
white flight
White flight or white exodus is the sudden or gradual large-scale migration of white people from areas becoming more racially or ethnoculturally diverse. Starting in the 1950s and 1960s, the terms became popular in the United States. They refer ...
over the 20th century have contributed significantly to this area's demographic readjustment. At the
2010 United States census
The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servi ...
, 60.5% of the population identified as
White Americans
White Americans are Americans who identify as and are perceived to be white people. This group constitutes the majority of the people in the United States. As of the 2020 Census, 61.6%, or 204,277,273 people, were white alone. This represented ...
;
by the 2018
American Community Survey, they made up an estimated 49.4% of the total population.
Since the
2020 census,
Black and African Americans,
Asian Americans,
multiracial Americans, and people of some other racial or ethnic identity increased to form a total of 55,210 residents against the city's 50,785 non-Hispanic whites. At least 24,023 Tylerites were
Hispanic or Latino American of any race as of 2020.
Religion
Sperling's BestPlaces
Bertrand T. Sperling (born 1950 in Brooklyn, New York) is an author and researcher. His books and studies on quality of life in America have made him "an internationally recognized expert on cities."
Work Studies
Sperling is commissioned to c ...
determined 73.2% of Tylerites and the surrounding area identified as religious or spiritual as of 2020. As part of the
Bible Belt
The Bible Belt is a region of the Southern United States in which socially conservative Protestant Christianity plays a strong role in society and politics, and church attendance across the denominations is generally higher than the nation's a ...
,
Protestant Christianity
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to ...
is the largest religious group, followed by
Roman Catholic Christianity
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
. According to the study, 31.1% of Tylerite Christians identified as
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...
, primarily affiliated with the
Texas Baptists,
Southern Baptist Convention,
National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc,
National Baptist Convention of America, and
Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship
The Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship (FGBCF) or Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship International (FGBCFI) is a predominantly African-American Charismatic Baptist denomination established by Bishop Paul Sylvester Morton, a former National ...
. The Roman Catholic community of Tyler and its metropolitan area have been primarily served by the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Tyler ( la, Dioecesis Tylerensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in eastern Texas in the United States. The episcopal see is Tyler, and the Cathedral of the Immaculat ...
. Following, 6.6% of the population were
Methodists, mainly affiliated with the
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...
and
African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...
.
Pentecostals
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement formed the fourth-largest Christian group in Tyler (5.2%) and the largest Pentecostal bodies within the area as of 2020 are the
Assemblies of God USA
The Assemblies of God USA (AG), officially the General Council of the Assemblies of God, is a Pentecostal Christian denomination in the United States founded in 1914 during a meeting of white Pentecostal ministers at Hot Springs, Arkansas (with e ...
and the
United Pentecostal Church
The United Pentecostal Church International (UPCI) is a Oneness Pentecostal denomination headquartered in Weldon Spring, Missouri, United States. The United Pentecostal Church International was formed in 1945 by a merger of the former Pentecostal ...
, prominent Trinitarian and
Oneness Pentecostal
Oneness Pentecostalism (also known as Apostolic, Jesus' Name Pentecostalism, or the Jesus Only movement) is a nontrinitarian religious movement within the Protestant Christian family of churches known as Pentecostalism. It derives its distinct ...
denominations. An estimated 1.2% of the religiously affiliated population were
Latter-day Saints
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The c ...
. Of the Christian population, 0.9% identified as
Anglicans or Episcopalians, 0.7%
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
, and 0.6%
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
. Roughly 13.6% of Tylerites are of another Christian faith including the
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops vi ...
and
Jehovah's Witnesses.
The Anglican or Episcopalian community are divided between the
Episcopal Church in the United States
The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine provinces. The presiding bishop of ...
and
Anglican Church in North America
The Anglican Church in North America (ACNA) is a Christian denomination in the Anglican tradition in the United States and Canada. It also includes ten congregations in Mexico, two mission churches in Guatemala, and a missionary diocese in Cuba ...
. The Episcopal Church USA-affiliated
Episcopal Diocese of Texas
The Episcopal Diocese of Texas is one of the dioceses of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. The diocese consists of all Episcopal congregations in the southeastern quartile of Texas, including the cities of Austin, Beaumont, G ...
has congregations in Tyler. The Anglican Church in North America also has congregations in Tyler and its metropolitan area. The
Diocese of Mid-America is the ACNA's diocese in Tyler, consisting of one church as of 2020. This diocese is also a member of the
Reformed Episcopal Church
The Reformed Episcopal Church (REC) is an Anglican church of evangelical Episcopalian heritage. It was founded in 1873 in New York City by George David Cummins, a former bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church.
The REC is a founding member ...
. Presbyterian and Lutheran bodies operating in the area include the
Presbyterian Church (USA) and
Presbyterian Church in America
The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) is the second-largest Presbyterian church body, behind the Presbyterian Church (USA), and the largest conservative Calvinist denomination in the United States. The PCA is Reformed in theology and presb ...
, and the
Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod) and
North American Lutheran Church. The Eastern Orthodox community is served by the
Orthodox Church in America
The Orthodox Church in America (OCA) is an Eastern Orthodox Christian church based in North America. The OCA is partly recognized as autocephalous and consists of more than 700 parishes, missions, communities, monasteries and institutions ...
's
Diocese of the South with its headquarters in nearby
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
.
Per Sperling's BestPlaces, approximately 0.1% of the city's population affiliated with
Judaism
Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...
compared to the state average of 0.2%, and 0.4% of the area identified as
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
. The area's Islamic community is affiliated with the East Texas Islamic Society.
Economy
In addition to the city's role in the rose-growing industry, Tyler is the headquarters for
Brookshire Grocery Company, which operates Brookshire's, Fresh, Super 1 Foods, and Spring Market supermarkets in the Ark-La-Tex and parts of
Dallas–Fort Worth. The company's main distribution center is in south Tyler, while SouthWest Foods, a subsidiary that processes dairy products, is just northeast of the city.
The city and metropolitan area also has a growing manufacturing sector including: Tyler Pipe, a subsidiary of
McWane Inc. that produces soil and utility pipe products;
Trane Technologies Inc.
Trane is a manufacturer of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, along with building management systems and controls. The company is a subsidiary of Trane Technologies, a company focused on manufacturing HVAC and refrige ...
, formerly a unit of
American Standard Companies
American Standard Companies was a manufacturer of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, plumbing fixtures, and automotive parts. The company was formed in 1929 through the merger of the American Radiator Company and Stand ...
, which manufactures
air conditioners and
heat pump
A heat pump is a device that can heat a building (or part of a building) by transferring thermal energy from the outside using a refrigeration cycle. Many heat pumps can also operate in the opposite direction, cooling the building by removing ...
s (this plant was originally built in 1955 by
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...
);
Delek Refining, an Israeli-owned
oil refinery
An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, lique ...
formerly La Gloria Oil and Gas Co (a
Crown Central Petroleum
Crown Central Petroleum, commonly known as Crown, is an American oil company that has flourished in Baltimore since the early 20th century until its recent decline due to rebranding.
History
Crown Central Petroleum Company or Crown, first began ...
subsidiary); PCSFerguson, an operating company of
Dover Corporation
Dover Corporation is an American conglomerate manufacturer of industrial products. The Downers Grove, Illinois-based company was founded in 1955. As of 2021, Dover's business was divided into five segments: Engineered Products, Clean Energy and ...
that specializes in equipment for the measurement and production of
natural gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...
using the plunger lift method; DYNAenergetics Tyler Distribution Center, part of DYNAenergetics USA, which manufactures perforating equipment and
explosives for the
oil and gas industry; and Vesuvius USA, a manufacturer of
refractory
In materials science, a refractory material or refractory is a material that is resistant to decomposition by heat, pressure, or chemical attack, and retains strength and form at high temperatures. Refractories are polycrystalline, polyphase, ...
ceramics
A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
used in the
steel industry
Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant t ...
.
According to the city's 2012–2013 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city's top ten employers were:
Recreation and tourism
Annually, the
Texas Rose Festival draws thousands of tourists to Tyler. The festival, which celebrates the role of the rose-growing industry in the local economy, is held in October and features a
parade, the
coronation
A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of ot ...
of the Rose Queen, and other civic events. The Rose Museum features the
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
of the
Festival
A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival ...
. Tyler is also home to
Caldwell Zoo, several local museums, Lake Palestine, Lake Tyler, and numerous
golf course
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". ...
s and country clubs. A few miles away in
Flint, Texas is The WaterPark @ The Villages, a year-round, indoor water park.
There is also an "Azalea Trail" in Tyler, which consists of two officially designated routes within the city that showcase homes or other landscaped venues adorned with
azalea shrubs. The Azalea Trail also is home to the long-standing tradition of the Azalea Belles. The official greeters of the Azalea Trail are known as the Azalea Belles, young
women
A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
from the Tyler area who dress in
antebellum
Antebellum, Latin for "before war", may refer to:
United States history
* Antebellum South, the pre-American Civil War period in the Southern United States
** Antebellum Georgia
** Antebellum South Carolina
** Antebellum Virginia
* Antebellum ...
gown
A gown, from the Saxon word, ''gunna'', is a usually loose outer garment from knee-to-full-length worn by men and women in Europe from the Early Middle Ages to the 17th century, and continuing today in certain professions; later, the term ''gown ...
s. The belles are chosen each year from area high schools or home school families.
Tyler State Park, a few miles north of the city limits, attracts visitors with opportunities to
camp
Camp may refer to:
Outdoor accommodation and recreation
* Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site
* a temporary settlement for nomads
* Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...
,
canoe
A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using a single-bladed paddle.
In British English, the ter ...
, and paddle boat on the
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
. Other available pastimes include
picnicking,
boating (
motors
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy.
Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power g ...
allowed – 5 mph
speed limit
Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed - expre ...
), boat
rentals,
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
,
birding
Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, ...
,
hiking
Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
,
mountain biking,
hiking trails
A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. Th ...
, lake
swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
(in unsupervised swimming area), and
nature study.
The Smith County Historical Society operates a
museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...
and
archive
An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials – in any medium – or the physical facility in which they are located.
Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or ...
s in the old Carnegie Library. The East Texas State Fair is held annually in Tyler. Harvey Convention Center, the largest building at Tyler's fairgrounds is slated for demolition in August 2021. Lake Tyler was the location of the
HGTV Dream Home contest in 2005. The house helped to boost tourism and interest in the community and surrounding areas. It was subsequently sold at
public auction in January 2008, for .
Historical
Tyler has a
Cotton Belt Railroad Depot Museum near the
Chamber of Commerce office.
Individuals and business firms dedicated to discovering, collecting, and preserving data, records, and other items relating to the history of Smith County, Texas, founded The Smith County Historical Society, a
501(c)(3) non-profit organization
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
, in 1959. The society operates a museum and archives in the former
Carnegie Public Library building in
downtown Tyler. Permanent museum exhibits include life-size dioramas of Smith County history, with topics ranging from the
Caddo Indians
The Caddo people comprise the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma, a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Binger, Oklahoma. They speak the Caddo language.
The Caddo Confederacy was a network of Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands, who ...
to the 20th century.
Other items from the society's collections are showcased in revolving, temporary exhibits. The society's
archival library
A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...
contains historical artifacts of Smith County, including newspapers, city directories, school records, photographs, maps, historical papers, and rare books. The archives are open to the public for
research
Research is " creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...
on a limited schedule with
volunteer
Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...
staff on duty. The society is also the official caretaker of
Camp Ford Historic Park.
Camp Ford was the largest
Confederate
Confederacy or confederate may refer to:
States or communities
* Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities
* Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...
Prisoner of War
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold prisoners of w ...
camp west of the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...
during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
. The original site of the camp
stockade is a public historic park managed by the Smith County Historical Society. The park contains a kiosk, paved trail, interpretive signage, a cabin reconstruction, and a picnic area. It is on Highway 271, north of Loop 323.
Sports
College and university teams
*
University of Texas at Tyler Patriots (NCAA Division II)
*
Texas College
Texas College is a private, historically black Christian Methodist Episcopal college in Tyler, Texas. It is affiliated with the United Negro College Fund. It was founded in 1894 by a group of ministers affiliated with the Christian Methodist Epi ...
Steers (HBCU)
*
Tyler Junior College Apaches (NJCAA)
Baseball teams
*
Tyler Elbertas (1912)
*
Tyler Trojans (1924–1929, 1931, 1935–1940, 1946–1950)
* Tyler Sports (1932)
* Tyler Governors (1933–1934)
*
Tyler East Texans (1950–1953)
*
Tyler Tigers The Tyler Tigers were a Big State League baseball team based in Tyler, Texas, USA that played from 1954 to 1955 as members of the Big State League
The Big State League was a mid-level, Class B level circuit in American minor league baseball that ...
(1954–1955)
*
Tyler Wildcatters (1994–1997)
* Tyler Roughnecks (2001)
Football
* East Texas Twisters (2004)
Road races
*
Fresh 15 Road Race
The FRESH 15 Road Race is a USATF-certified 15-kilometer (9.3 mi) road race in Tyler, TX, United States. The race draws runners from all over the region and the nation. The race day also includes a 5-kilometer (3.1 mi) race and the L ...
(Annual)
Soccer
*
Tyler FC (2016–Present)
Disc golf
* Tyler features fifteen
disc golf courses and seven leagues, and the surrounding area features a total of thirty-six courses and seventeen leagues. For these reasons, users of the disc golf app
UDisc ranked Tyler as the third best disc golf destination in Texas and second best in the United States.
Government
Local government
According to the city's 2009 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city's various funds had $87.7 million in revenues, $101.7 million in expenditures, $49.2 million in total assets, $12.3 million in total liabilities, and $17.6 million in cash in investments.
* McDonald Lorance, 1846
* William Bartlett,
* ?
* Oscar Burton,
* Zeb J. Spruiell,
* ?
* Murph Wilson, 1967
* ?
* Jack H. Halbert, 1970–1976
* ?
* Norman Shtofman, 1982–1984
* Smith Reynolds, Junior
*
Kevin Eltife* Joey Seeber, 2002–2008
* Barbara Bass, 2008–2014
* Martin Heines, 2014–2020
* Don Warren, 2020–present
The Northeast Texas Public Health District is a political subdivision under the State of Texas established by the City of Tyler and Smith County. In place for nearly 70 years, the Health District became a separate entity in 1994, with an administrative Public Health Board. With a stated vision "To be the Healthiest Community in Texas", the district has a full-time staff of over 130 employees. The Health District has a broad range of services and responsibilities dedicated to their mission: "To Protect, Promote, and Provide for the Health of Our Community."
State government
Tyler is represented in the
Texas Senate
The Texas Senate ( es, Senado de Texas) is the upper house of the Texas State Legislature. There are 31 members of the Senate, representing single-member districts across the U.S. state of Texas, with populations of approximately 806,000 per co ...
by
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 ...
Bryan Hughes
Bryan Hughes (born 19 June 1976) is an English football manager and former professional footballer.
He played as a midfielder from 1994 to 2015, notably Premier League for Birmingham City, Charlton Athletic and Hull City as well as featuring ...
, District 1, and in the
Texas House of Representatives
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abo ...
by Republican Matt Schaefer, District 6. The
Texas Twelfth Court of Appeals is in Tyler. The
Texas Department of Criminal Justice
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jails ...
operates the Region I
Parole
Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...
Division Office and the Tyler District Parole Office in Tyler.
Federal government
The two U.S. senators from Texas are Republicans
John Cornyn
John Cornyn III ( ; born February 2, 1952) is an American politician and attorney serving as the senior United States senator from Texas, a seat he has held since 2002. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the Senate majority whip for ...
and
Ted Cruz
Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States Senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz served as Solicitor General of Texas from ...
. Tyler is part of
Texas's 1st congressional district
Texas' 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives serves the northeastern portion of the state of Texas. As of the 2000 Census, the 1st district contained 651,619 people. It consists largely of three small East ...
, which is currently represented by Republican
Louie Gohmert
Louis Buller Gohmert Jr. (; born August 18, 1953) is an American attorney, politician, and former jurist serving as the U.S. representative from Texas's 1st congressional district since 2005. Gohmert is a Republican and was part of the Tea P ...
. The
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...
operates several post offices in Tyler, including Tyler,
Azalea, Southeast Crossing, and the South Tyler Annex.
Education
Colleges and universities
Tyler's higher education institutions include the
University of Texas at Tyler
The University of Texas at Tyler (UT Tyler) is a public research university in Tyler, Texas. Founded in 1971, it is a part of the University of Texas System.
UT Tyler consists of five professional colleges and one traditional college of arts and ...
and the
University of Texas Health Center at Tyler, both part of the
University of Texas System
The University of Texas System (UT System) is an American government entity of the state of Texas that includes 13 higher educational institutions throughout the state including eight universities and five independent health institutions. The UT& ...
, as well as
Texas College
Texas College is a private, historically black Christian Methodist Episcopal college in Tyler, Texas. It is affiliated with the United Negro College Fund. It was founded in 1894 by a group of ministers affiliated with the Christian Methodist Epi ...
, the city's only HBCU, and
Tyler Junior College
Tyler Junior College (TJC) is a public community college in Tyler, Texas. It is one of the largest community colleges in Texas, with an enrollment of more than 12,500 credit students each year with an additional 20,000 continuing education enroll ...
.
Primary and secondary schools
Public primary and secondary education for much of the city is provided by the
Tyler Independent School District
Tyler Independent School District is an independent school district based in Tyler, Texas ( USA).
In addition to serving most of Tyler, the district serves the city of Noonday and rural areas in west central Smith County. Notable alumni inc ...
, which includes high schools
Tyler High School (previously known as John Tyler High School) and
Tyler Legacy High School
Tyler Legacy High School, previously known as Robert E. Lee High School, is one of two Tyler Independent School District high school campuses in the city of Tyler, Texas, the other being Tyler High School. Tyler Legacy High School has served the ...
(previously known as Robert E. Lee High School), as well as Tyler ISD Early College High School, Premier High School of Tyler, a
public charter school (Cumberland Academy). Several Tyler schools offer
international baccalaureate
The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly known as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB D ...
and
advanced placement programs.
Tyler is also home to the University of Texas at Tyler University Academy at Tyler, a K–12 public charter operated by the
University of Texas at Tyler
The University of Texas at Tyler (UT Tyler) is a public research university in Tyler, Texas. Founded in 1971, it is a part of the University of Texas System.
UT Tyler consists of five professional colleges and one traditional college of arts and ...
since 2012 that offers university courses to students in grades 9–12.
Portions of incorporated Tyler are served by surrounding school districts. These include sections of southeast Tyler, served by the
Whitehouse Independent School District
The Whitehouse Independent School District is a school district in Whitehouse, Texas, United States. In addition to Whitehouse, the district also serves some of the southeast Tyler.
In 2009, the school district was rated "academically acceptabl ...
, and some sections in the east which are served by the
chapel Hill Independent School District.
Private schools
There are also private schools in Tyler, including
Grace Community School (Texas)
Grace Community School is a private Christian school in Tyler, Texas
Tyler is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the largest city and county seat of Smith County, Texas, Smith County. It is also the largest city in Northeast Texas. With a ...
,
All Saints Episcopal School,
Seventh-day Adventist Church School, King's Academy Christian School, Kingdom Life Academy (in the same building but not affiliated with King's Academy), Christian Heritage School, East Texas Christian Academy, and Good Shepherd Reformed Episcopal School. The Brook Hill School in nearby Bullard, TX is also served by the Tyler Independent School District. The Tyler
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
School System of the
Catholic Diocese of Tyler consists of St. Gregory Cathedral School and
Bishop Thomas K. Gorman Regional Catholic Middle and High School.
Media
Tyler has 24 media outlets and one newspaper. There are many others in the surrounding area.
Newspaper
*
Tyler Morning Telegraph
The ''Tyler Morning Telegraph'' is a daily newspaper based in Tyler, Texas, United States. It is privately owned by M. Roberts Media.
History
The newspaper begin publishing weekly in 1877 as the ''Weekly Courier''. In 1882, the ''Daily Courier' ...
Television
Radio
AM stations
FM stations
Healthcare
Hospitals in Tyler include UT Health Tyler,
Trinity Mother Frances Health System, UT Health North Campus Tyler, and Texas Spine & Joint Hospital. There are also many clinics including the Direct Care Clinic.
Transportation
The most common form of
transport
Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelin ...
ation is the
motor vehicle. Tyler is a nexus of several major highways.
Interstate 20 runs along the north edge of the city going east and west,
U.S. Highway 69 runs north–south through the center of town and
State Highway 64 runs east–west through the city. Tyler also has access to
U.S. Highway 271,
State Highway 31,
State Highway 155, and
State Highway 110.
Loop 323 was established in 1957 and encircles the city, which has continued to grow outside of this loop.
Loop 49 is a limited access "outer loop" around the city and currently runs from State Highway 110 south of Tyler to US 69 northwest of Tyler near Lindale.
Loop 124 is in length.
Public transportation
Tyler Transit provides customers with
public transport
Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typi ...
ation service within the City of Tyler. The buses run daily, excluding Sundays and holidays. Tyler Transit offers customers the option to purchase
tickets
Ticket or tickets may refer to:
Slips of paper
* Lottery ticket
* Parking ticket, a ticket confirming that the parking fee was paid (and the time of the parking start)
* Toll ticket, a slip of paper used to indicate where vehicles entered a tol ...
, tokens, or passes at the Tyler Transit office, at 210 E. Oakwood Street inside the
Cotton Belt Railroad Depot at the main transfer point. The City of Tyler paratransit service is a shared-ride, public transportation service. Requests for service must be made the day before the service is needed. Trips can be scheduled up to 14 days in advance.
ADA
Ada may refer to:
Places
Africa
* Ada Foah, a town in Ghana
* Ada (Ghana parliament constituency)
* Ada, Osun, a town in Nigeria
Asia
* Ada, Urmia, a village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran
* Ada, Karaman, a village in Karaman Province, ...
compliant paratransit service is provided to all origins and destinations within the service area defined as the city limits of Tyler.
Greyhound Lines bus service is available through a downtown terminal.
Air
Tyler Pounds Regional Airport
Tyler Pounds Regional Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located west of Tyler, in Smith County, Texas, United States.
The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 called it a "primary commercial service" airport. ...
offers service to and from
Dallas–Fort Worth International Airport and
Denver International Airport via
American Eagle
The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...
and
Frontier, respectively. While American Eagle provides service with
Embraer ERJ-135
The Embraer ERJ family (for Embraer Regional Jet, model names EMB-135, EMB-140 and EMB-145) are regional jets designed and produced by the Brazilian aerospace company Embraer. The family includes the ERJ135 (37 passengers), ERJ140 (44 passenge ...
and
ERJ-145
The Embraer ERJ family (for Embraer Regional Jet, model names EMB-135, EMB-140 and EMB-145) are regional jets designed and produced by the Brazilian aerospace company Embraer. The family includes the ERJ135 (37 passengers), ERJ140 (44 passenger ...
regional jets, Frontier operates with
Airbus A320
The Airbus A320 family is a series of narrow-body airliners developed and produced by Airbus.
The A320 was launched in March 1984, first flew on 22 February 1987, and was introduced in April 1988 by Air France.
The first member of the famil ...
mainline jet aircraft, Europe's own equivalent to the
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton Factory in Washington (state), Washington.
Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the Boeing 707, 7 ...
. General Aviation services are provided by two fixed-base operators
Johnson Aviationand the Jet Center of Tyler.
Train
Tyler was the hub for a series of short-line
railroad
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
s which later evolved into the
St. Louis Southwestern Railway, better known as "The Cotton Belt Route," with the city last being a stop on the unnamed successor to the ''
Morning Star'' between
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
and
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
. This line later became part of the
Southern Pacific Railroad, which itself merged with the
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
, which continues to serve the city today with freight traffic. No passenger train service to Tyler has occurred since April 1956, but
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
's ''
Texas Eagle
The ''Texas Eagle'' is a daily passenger train route operated by Amtrak between Chicago and San Antonio in the central and western United States. Prior to 1988, the train was known as the ''Eagle''.
Trains #21 (southbound) and 22 (northbound) ...
'' runs through the city of
Mineola, a short distance north of Tyler.
Walkability
A 2014 study by
Walk Score
Walk Score, a subsidiary of Redfin, provides walkability analysis and apartment search tools. Its flagship product is a large-scale, public access walkability index that assigns a numerical walkability score to any address in the United States, U ...
ranked Tyler with a walkability score of 32 (out of 100) with some amenities within walking distance.
Notable events
* Fragments of the
Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' landed near Tyler in 2003, following the
breakup of it in the atmosphere.
* On the evening of 2009, a fire engulfed a number of historic buildings in downtown Tyler. Eight different fire departments responded to the fire.
* The 1982 Supreme Court case
Plyler v. Doe, which prohibited denying schooling to immigrant children, originated in the
Tyler Independent School District
Tyler Independent School District is an independent school district based in Tyler, Texas ( USA).
In addition to serving most of Tyler, the district serves the city of Noonday and rural areas in west central Smith County. Notable alumni inc ...
.
* The
Tyler courthouse shooting occurred in 2005, when David Arroyo fatally shot his ex-wife and a man in the Tyler Square inside the Smith County Courthouse.
Notable people
Sister cities
Tyler's
sister cities
A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties.
While there are early examples of inter ...
are:
*
Lo Barnechea, Chile
*
Jelenia Góra
Jelenia Góra (pron. ; Polish: ; german: Hirschberg im Riesengebirge; Exonym: ''Deer Mountain''; szl, Jelyniŏ Gōra) is a historic city in southwestern Poland, within the historical region of Lower Silesia. Jelenia Góra is situated in the Low ...
, Poland
*
Liberia, Costa Rica
*
San Miguel de Allende
San Miguel de Allende () is the principal city in the municipality of San Miguel de Allende, located in the far eastern part of Guanajuato, Mexico. A part of the Bajío region, the city lies from Mexico City, 86 km (53 mi) from Queré ...
, Mexico
*
Yachiyo, Japan
See also
*
Cotton Belt Depot Train Museum
*
List of museums in East Texas
This article was split from List of museums in Texas.
The list of museums in Texas encompasses museums defined for this context as institutions (including nonprofit organizations, government entities, and private businesses) that collect and car ...
*
Tyler Museum of Art
*
Whitaker-McClendon House
Notes
References
Further reading
* Austin, Gladys Peters, ''Along the Century Trail: Early History of Tyler, Texas'' (Dallas: Avalon Press, 1946)
* Burton, Morris ''Tyler as an Early Railroad Center'', Chronicles of Smith County, Spring 1963
* Betts, Vicki, ''Smith County, Texas, in the Civil War'' (Tyler, Texas: Smith County Historical Society, 1978)
* Everett, Dianna, ''The Texas Cherokees: A People between Two Fires, 1819–1840'' (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1990)
* Glover, ed., Robert W., ''Tyler and Smith County, Texas'' (n.p.: Walsworth, 1976)
* Henderson, Adele, Smith County, ''Texas: Its Background and History in Ante-Bellum Days'' (M.A. thesis, University of Texas, 1926)
* McDonald, Archie P. ''Historic Smith County'' (Historical Publishing Network, 2006).
* Reed, Robert E. Jr. ''Images of America: Tyler'' (
Arcadia Publishing
Arcadia Publishing is an American publisher of neighborhood, local, and regional history of the United States in pictorial form.(analysis of the successful ''Images of America'' series). Arcadia Publishing also runs the History Press, which publ ...
, 2008).
* Reed, Robert E. Jr. ''Postcard History: Tyler'' (
Arcadia Publishing
Arcadia Publishing is an American publisher of neighborhood, local, and regional history of the United States in pictorial form.(analysis of the successful ''Images of America'' series). Arcadia Publishing also runs the History Press, which publ ...
, 2009).
* Smith County Historical Society, ''Historical Atlas of Smith County'' (Tyler, Texas: Tyler Print Shop, 1965)
* Wardlaw, Trevor P. "Sires and Sons: The Story of Hubbard's Regiment." CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2015.
* Whisenhunt, Donald W. comp., ''Chronological History of Smith County'' (Tyler, Texas: Smith County Historical Society, 1983)
* Woldert, Albert, ''A History of Tyler and Smith County'' (San Antonio: Naylor, 1948)
External links
City Of Tyler WebsiteOfficial City Website
{{Authority control
Cities in Texas
County seats in Texas
Cities in Smith County, Texas
Cities in the Ark-La-Tex
County seats in the Ark-La-Tex
Populated places established in 1846
History of Tyler, Texas