John Tyler Sr. (February 28, 1747 – January 6, 1813) was a Virginia planter, judge, 15th Governor of Virginia (1808–1811) and the father of the tenth President of the United States,John Tyler.

Born in York County, Virginia, Tyler attended the College of William and Mary and read law under Judge Nicholas in Williamsburg to enter the bar. He practiced in the county courts, and was a planter in Charles City County, Virginia.

John Tyler Sr. served in the Continental Army as a 1st lieutenant in the 3d Virginia Regiment from February 9 to September 5, 1776. After the Declaration of Independence, he was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates for several years, beginning in 1777. He was a Speaker from 1781 to 1784. He was a member of the Virginia Council of State from 1780 to 1781. In the debates over ratification of the United States Constitution, Tyler was an Anti-Federalist, voting against the document at the Virginia Ratifying Convention in 1788. He explained his opposition stating, "It has been often observed … that liberty ought not to be given up without knowing the terms. The gentlemen themselves cannot agree in the construction of various clauses of [the Constitution]; and so long as this is the case, so long shall liberty be in danger."[1]

In 1786, he was appointed a judge in the Virginia High Court of Admiralty and was consequently a judge on the first Virginia Court of Appeals. When the Court of Appeals was reorganized late in 1788, Tyler was made a judge of the general court. In 1808, he was elected Governor of Virginia, serving in that office until 1811.

On January 2, 1811, Tyler was nominated by President James Madison to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Virginia vacated by Cyrus Griffin. Tyler was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 3, 1811, and received his commission on January 7, 1811. He held this office until his death, in Charles City County, Virginia, in 1813.

Tyler County, West Virginia is named in his honor.