Tornero was born in Valparaíso, on October 14, 1842. His parents were Carmen Olmos de Aguilera Orrego, and the Spanish immigrant José Santos Tornero Monteros, who was also the owner of the first public library in Chile. Recaredo Tornero studied at the National Institute of Santiago, and later attended the École Supérieure de Commerce de Paris, in France. He came back to Chile in 1860. In 1866, he succeeded his father as the director of "El Mercurio de Valparaíso". He married Elena Stuven Olmos, and they had four children: Carmela, Recaredo, Teresa and Enrique.