Royall Tyler

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Royall Tyler
Born	June 18, 1757 Boston, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British America
Died	August 26, 1826(1826-08-26) (aged 69) Brattleboro, Vermont, United States
Resting place	Brattleboro's Prospect Hill Cemetery
Nationality	American
Education	Roxbury Latin School Harvard University
Occupations	Jurist militiaman playwright
Spouse	Mary Palmer
Children	11

Royall Tyler (June 18, 1757 – August 26, 1826) was an American jurist, teacher and playwright. He was born in Boston, graduated from Harvard University in 1776, and then served in the Massachusetts militia during the American Revolution. He was admitted to the bar in 1780, became a lawyer, and fathered eleven children. In 1801, he was appointed a Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court. He wrote a play, The Contrast, which was produced in 1787 in New York City, shortly after George Washington's inauguration. It is considered the first American comedy. Washington attended the production, which was well-received, and Tyler became a literary celebrity.