Tyson family

James Tyson was born in Philadelphia on 26 October 1841, the son of Henry Tyson, M.D. and Gertrude (Haviland) Caswell Tyson. Henry (1815-1872), a native of Worcester Township, PA, was one of eleven children which included his sister Maria (1805-1881) who later married John Zimmerman. Henry initially moved to Philadelphia to teach school when he was in his mid twenties. Henry eventually enrolled at Pennsylvania Medical College, where he graduated in 1844. Around 1839 Henry married Gertrude Tyson (1803-1870), and together they had two children - James Tyson and Henry Tyson. The household also included Gertrude's two children John Caswell, Jr. and Amanda Caswell from a previous marriage. The Tyson family subsequently moved to Reading, PA, where, in 1854, Henry was appointed warden of the Berks County Prison.

James' formal educated started in the fall of 1855, when he attend the Friends Central School in Philadelphia. In the fall of 1857, he enrolled in the Sophomore Class at Haverford College, where his classmates elected him President of the Everett Society, a prestigious student literary society. He graduated in 1860, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. Five years later, Haverford also conferred upon him the degree of Master of Arts, probably the semi-honorary master's degree commonly conferred in the Anglo-American collegiate tradition.

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