leader_title = Mayor

Tyler is the county seat of Smith County in East Texas; it lies roughly halfway between Dallas and Shreveport. The city is named for President John Tyler in recognition of his support for Texas' admission to the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 83,650.

Tyler is sometimes referred to as the Rose Capital of America because of its role in the rose-growing industry; about 20% of commercial rose bushes produced in the U.S. are grown in Tyler and Smith County and more than half of the rose bushes are packaged and shipped from the area. It boasts the nation's largest municipal rose garden and hosts the Texas Rose Festival each October.

In 1985, the international Adopt-a-Highway movement originated in Tyler when, after appeals by local Texas Department of Transportation officials, the local Civitan chapter adopted a 2-mile (3-km) stretch of U.S. Highway 69.

Tyler is home to the Caldwell Zoo.

The city's main newspaper is the Tyler Morning Telegraph.