Following the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861, the city of Baltimore was gripped by an extended period of unrest. The city was home to a large population Confederate sympathizers, and so several riots broke out, most notably the Baltimore riot of April 1861. During this riot, Tyler worked extensively to aid Union soldiers wounded in the riot; she lodged soldiers in her residence, and in one instance hailed a furniture wagon to transport the injured. For her treatment of soldiers belonging to a Massachusetts regiment, Tyler was granted a formal vote of thanks from the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1862.