Harold Martin Ryan (February 6, 1911 – March 8, 2007) was a politician and judge from the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. He was twice elected to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

, serving from 1962 to 1965.

Early life and career

Ryan was born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

. He graduated from St. Joseph's High School in 1929. He attended Ferris Institute (now

Ferris State University Ferris State University (FSU or Ferris) is a public university with its main campus in Big Rapids, Michigan. It was founded in 1884 and became a public institution in 1950. Ferris is the ninth-largest institutions of higher education by enrol ...

Big Rapids, Michigan Big Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 10,601 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Mecosta County. The city is located within Big Rapids Township, but it is politically independent. Big Rapids is home ...

1929-1930 as well as attended Michigan State College (now Michigan State University) of

East Lansing East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County. At the 2020 Census the population was 47,741. Located directly east of the state capital ...

1930–1932. He received a J.D. from the University of Detroit Law School in 1935 and admitted to the bar the same year and engaged in private practice. He later assistant prosecuting attorney of Wayne County, 1945–1946.

Political career

Ryan served as a member of the Michigan Senate, 1948–1962, and was minority leader for the final six years. He was a delegate to Michigan state conventions every two years from 1940 to 1970 and a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions of

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim Elliot and Pete Fleming, ar ...

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Jan ...

, and

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...

. On February 13, 1962, in a special election, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

Louis C. Rabaut, Ryan was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

from

Michigan's 14th congressional district Michigan's 14th congressional district was a congressional district that stretched from eastern Detroit westward to Farmington Hills, then north to the suburb of Pontiac. From 1993 to 2013, it was based entirely in Wayne County. It was last r ...

to the

87th Congress The 87th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 1961 ...

. In November 1962, Ryan was reelected to a full term in the 88th Congress, serving from February 13, 1962 to January 3, 1965. He was an unsuccessful candidate for re-nomination to the 89th Congress in 1964, losing to fellow Democrat Lucien N. Nedzi. He also lost against Nedzi in the primaries two years later.

After Congress

A decade after leaving Congress, he served as circuit judge of Wayne County for the third judicial circuit of Michigan from 1976 to 1985. He was a visiting judge from 1985 to 2006. Harold M. Ryan was a Catholic and a member of

Knights of Columbus The Knights of Columbus (K of C) is a global Catholic fraternal service order founded by Michael J. McGivney on March 29, 1882. Membership is limited to practicing Catholic men. It is led by Patrick E. Kelly, the order's 14th Supreme Knight. ...

Lions The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large cat of the genus '' Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphic; adult ...

, and Gamma Eta Gamma. He lived in

St. Clair Shores, Michigan St. Clair Shores is a suburban city bordering Lake Saint Clair (North America), Lake St. Clair in Macomb County, Michigan, Macomb County of the U.S. state of Michigan. It forms a part of the Metro Detroit area, and is located about northeast of d ...

until his death of

congestive heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, ...

at 96 years of age.Harold M. Ryan, '35 - 1911-2007
, '' UDM School of Law''

References

External links

The Political Graveyard Obituary from Detroit Free Press
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryan, Harold Martin 1911 births 2007 deaths Catholics from Michigan Democratic Party Michigan state senators Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan Michigan state court judges Michigan State University alumni University of Detroit Mercy alumni Ferris State University alumni People from St. Clair Shores, Michigan 20th-century American politicians 20th-century American judges Politicians from Detroit