Allan Aloysius Ryan (July 4, 1903 – October 13, 1981) was an American financier and politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

Life

He was born on July 4, 1903, in Manhattan, New York City, the son of Allan Aloysius Ryan (1880–1940) and Sarah (Tack) Ryan (1879–1957). Allan A. Ryan Sr. was a son of

Thomas Fortune Ryan Thomas Fortune Ryan (October 17, 1851 – November 23, 1928) was an American tobacco, insurance and transportation magnate. Although he lived in New York City for much of his adult career, Ryan was perhaps the greatest benefactor of the Roman ...

(1851–1928), and was a stock broker like his father. Ryan Sr. speculated heavily on the stock exchange, went bankrupt in 1922, and was disinherited by his father. Ryan Jr. attended Canterbury School, and graduated from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

in 1924. Then he worked in

Wall Street Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Str ...

, to learn the stock business from the bottom up. In 1928, he inherited a fortune from his grandfather, and opened an investment banking firm with Charles H. Sabin Jr. He got a seat on the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is the List of stock exchanges, largest stock excha ...

in 1930. On February 5, 1929, Ryan Jr. married Janet Newbold. They were divorced in June 1936. On January 19, 1937, he married Eleanor Barry, a fashion editor of ''

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' (stylized as ''Harper's BAZAAR'') is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. Bazaar has been published in New York City since November 2, 1867, originally as a weekly publication entitled ''Harper's Bazar''."Corporat ...

''. Ryan Jr. had a country estate in Rhinebeck and bred

Aberdeen Angus The Aberdeen Angus, sometimes simply Angus, is a Scotland, Scottish List of cattle breeds, breed of small beef cattle. It derives from cattle native to the Scottish counties, counties of Aberdeenshire (historic), Aberdeen, Banffshire, Banff, ...

cattle in

Dutchess County Dutchess County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 295,911. The county seat is the city of Poughkeepsie. The county was created in 1683, one of New York's first twelve counties, and later org ...

. He was a member of the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

, representing the 28th district (Columbia, Dutchess and Putnam counties) from 1939 to 1942, sitting in the 162nd and

163rd New York State Legislature The 163rd New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from January 8, 1941, to April 24, 1942, during the ninth and tenth years of Herbert H. Lehman's governorship, in Albany. Bac ...

s. On May 29, 1941, Ryan was divorced from his wife Eleanor. On August 5, 1941, he married Priscilla (St. George) Duke, daughter of Congresswoman Katharine St. George (1894–1983) and ex-wife of Angier Biddle Duke (1915–1995). During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

he became a

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

, and served with the

Allied Military Government The Allied Military Government of Occupied Territories (originally abbreviated AMGOT, later AMG) was the form of military rule administered by Allied forces during and after World War II within former Axis-held territories they occupied. The fir ...

in Europe. After the war, he was chairman of the Board of the

Royal Typewriter Company Royal Consumer Information Products, Inc. (formerly The Royal Typewriter Company) is an American technology company founded in January 1904 as a manufacturer of typewriters. Royal’s product line has evolved to include cash registers, shredders, ...

and, after a merger in 1954, became chairman of the Board of

Royal McBee Royal Consumer Information Products, Inc. (formerly The Royal Typewriter Company) is an American technology company founded in January 1904 as a manufacturer of typewriters. Royal’s product line has evolved to include cash registers, shredders, ...

. On September 2, 1950, Ryan was divorced from his wife Priscilla. On December 13, 1950, he married Grace Amory, a noted amateur golfer. He died on October 13, 1981, in

New York Hospital Weill Cornell Medical Center (; previously known as New York Hospital, Old New York Hospital, and City Hospital) is a research hospital in New York City. It is the teaching hospital for Cornell University's medical school and is part of NewYork-P ...

in Manhattan.''Allan Ryan, Ex-State Senator''
in ''The New York Times'' on October 16, 1981 Allan is buried in

Locust Valley Cemetery Locust Valley Cemetery is a non-denominational cemetery located in Locust Valley, New York, in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County. The cemetery was founded in the nineteenth century and designed by John Charles Olmsted and Frederick Law O ...

Locust Valley, New York Locust Valley is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, on the North Shore of Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 3,406 at the 2010 census. History The rolling ...

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ryan, Allan A Jr. 1903 births 1981 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople American chairpersons of corporations American stockbrokers Animal breeders Businesspeople from New York City Canterbury School (Connecticut) alumni Military personnel from New York City New York Stock Exchange people People from Rhinebeck, New York Politicians from Manhattan Princeton University alumni Republican Party New York (state) state senators United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army officers 20th-century members of the New York State Legislature