History
Prior to the arrival of Europeans, the land where Sherwood Forest stands was inhabited by the Weanoc Indians, a tribe of the Powhatan Confederacy, who had seasonal camps here. The English settled this area in the 17th century, cultivating tobacco. Over time, land in the area was subdivided into tracts. One of these, Brown’s Quarter, contained a small, late-18th century Tidewater farmhouse that became the core of Sherwood Forest.
Collier Minge, a Tyler cousin, inherited Brown’s Quarter and enlarged the house in the 1820’s, naming it “The Grove”. John Tyler purchased the 900-acre plantation from Minge in 1842 and amassed surrounding tracts to create a 1600-acre estate befitting a president. At the end of his term in 1845, he and Julia Tyler retired here and, recognizing his status as an “outlaw” from the Whig party, they renamed the residence Sherwood Forest in a reference to Robin Hood.
Through the late 1840s and 1850s, the Tylers renovated and added to the house, making it the longest frame residence in the country (measuring 300 feet long). Outbuildings were constructed and the property evolved into a working plantation where wheat, corn, oats and clover were cultivated. They also raised livestock and operated a gristmill.
The Tylers relied on enslaved workers to sustain the plantation. In 1860, just before the Civil War, there were 43 enslaved individuals laboring here: among them, members of the Armistead, Black, Hall and Short families. The Tylers leased additional enslaved workers and also employed free people of color. The location of slave dwellings and of the burial grounds where Sherwood Forest’s enslaved residents rest is unknown. We acknowledge that not all who lived here did so freely. Research to learn more of their story is ongoing.
Generations of the Tyler family have resided at Sherwood Forest since the President’s time. The property is open to the public today through Harrison Ruffin and Frances Payne Bouknight Tyler’s generous support of Sherwood Forest Plantation Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization.
Mr. & Mrs. Harrison Ruffin Tyler at Sherwood Forest.
The Tylers at Sherwood Forest
April 6, 1841
1842
June 26, 1844
March, 1845
January 18, 1862
November, 1863
1864
1865 to 1870
1870
1889
1927
1952
1975
John Tyler sworn in as President of the United States
President Tyler purchases Sherwood Forest
President John Tyler and Julia Gardiner marry in New York City at the Church of the Ascension. The couple visit Sherwood Forest on their honeymoon.
The Tylers retire to Sherwood Forest when the President's term ends.
President Tyler dies in Richmond, Virginia.
Julia and her youngest children relocate to New York City for the remainder of the Civil War.
Union General Edward A. Wild leaves Sherwood Forest in care of the plantations formerly enslaved workers. Union troops ransack the residence.
Julia Tyler considers selling Sherwood Forest but decides against it. A succession of caretakers reside here. African-American sharecroppers lease some of the land.
David Gardiner Tyler, the Tyler's eldest son, returns to Sherwood Forest. He farms, practices law, and holds political office in Charles City County.
Julia Tyler dies, leaving Sherwood Forest to her children. Six years later, David Gardiner Tyler pays of liens on the property, thus becoming its owner.
David Gardiner Tyler dies, leaving Sherwood Forest in equal shares to his four children.
David Gardiner Tyler Jr. builds a home, Creek, nearby on Tyler land. James Alfred Jones Tyler and his wife Katherine raise their family at Sherwood Forest.
Harrison Ruffin Tyler, grandson of the President, and his wife, Frances P. B. Tyler, purchase Sherwood Forest from James Alfred Jones Tyler's children. They begin restoration of the residence and grounds in preparation for opening to the public.