Royall Tyler Wheeler (August 23, 1810 – April 8, 1864), sometimes referred to as Royal Tyler Wheeler, was an American judge who became Chief Justice of the
Texas Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Texas (SCOTX) is the court of last resort for civil matters (including juvenile delinquency cases, which are categorized as civil under the Texas Family Code) in the U.S. state of Texas. A different court, the Texas Court of ...
. Between 1857 and 1860, he was the first head of the
Baylor Law School
Baylor Law School is the oldest law school in Texas. Baylor Law School is affiliated with Baylor University and located in Waco, Texas. The school has been accredited by the American Bar Association since 1931 and has been a member of the Associ ...
. He is the namesake of
Wheeler County, Texas
Wheeler County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 4,990. Its county seat is Wheeler. The county was formed in 1876 and organized in 1879. It is named for Royall Tyler Wheeler, a chief ...
, and its county seat.
Biography
Wheeler was born in Virginia and moved to Ohio before completing his legal preparation. He moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas, where he became a partner of Williamson S. Oldham in law practice. After marrying Emily Walker, he moved in 1839 to
San Augustine, Texas
San Augustine is the county seat city of San Augustine County, Texas, in East Texas, United States. The population was at the 2020 census.
History
The first European settlement in the area began in 1717 with the establishment of Mission Nues ...
, where he was in law practice with future Republic of Texas vice president
Kenneth Lewis Anderson
Kenneth Lewis Anderson (September 11, 1805 – July 3, 1845) was a lawyer, the fourth and last Vice President of the Republic of Texas.
Anderson was born in Hillsborough, North Carolina, where he worked as a shoemaker at an early age. By 1824 ...
. By 1842, Wheeler became a district attorney in Texas, and he was named a district judge and associate judge on the Supreme Court of the Republic of Texas three years later. He remained on the Supreme Court as an Associate Justice when Texas was annexed by the United States in 1845, and he became a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas in 1857.
That same year, Wheeler was named the founding head of the first iteration of the Baylor Law School. At that time, Baylor was located in
Independence, Texas
--->
Independence is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Washington County, Texas, United States. Located twelve miles northeast of Brenham, it was founded in 1835 in Austin's colony of Anglo-Americans. It became a Baptist re ...
. Fellow faculty members included
Robert Emmett Bledsoe Baylor
Robert Emmett Bledsoe Baylor (May 10, 1793 – January 6, 1874) was an ordained Baptist minister, slave owner, district judge, politician and co-founder of Baylor University.Chief Justice of TexasThomas J. Brown and future state penitentiary superintendent
Thomas J. Goree
Thomas Jewett Goree (November 14, 1835 – March 5, 1905) was a Confederate Captain in the First Corps, Army of Northern Virginia during the American Civil War. By the end of the war he was promoted to the rank of captain. He was one of Lt. G ...
. Wheeler was also on the law school faculty at
Austin College
Austin College is a private liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and located in Sherman, Texas.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 polic ...
, Wheeler committed suicide in
Washington County, Texas
Washington County is a county in Texas. As of the 2020 census, the population was 35,805. Its county seat is Brenham, which is located along U.S. Highway 290, 72 miles northwest of Houston. The county was created in 1835 as a municipality o ...
. He was succeeded as Chief Justice by
Oran Milo Roberts
Oran Milo Roberts (July 9, 1815May 19, 1898), was the 17th Governor of Texas from January 21, 1879, to January 16, 1883. He was a member of the Democratic Party.
Roberts County, Texas, is named after him.
Early life
Roberts was born in Laurens ...
, who later became
Governor of Texas
The governor of Texas heads the state government of Texas. The governor is the leader of the executive and legislative branch of the state government and is the commander in chief of the Texas Military. The current governor is Greg Abbott, wh ...
. About 15 years after Wheeler's death, Wheeler County, Texas (and a town of the same name) were organized and named after him.