Edward George Ryan (November 13, 1810October 19, 1880) was an

Irish American Irish Americans () are Irish ethnics who live within in the United States, whether immigrants from Ireland or Americans with full or partial Irish ancestry. Irish immigration to the United States From the 17th century to the mid-19th c ...

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

, lawyer, and

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

pioneer. He was the 5th chief justice of the

Wisconsin Supreme Court The Wisconsin Supreme Court is the Supreme court, highest and final court of appeals in the state judicial system of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. In addition to hearing appeals of lower Wisconsin court decisions, the Wisconsin Supreme Court also ...

; he was initially appointed by Democratic governor William Robert Taylor in 1874 and retained office until his death in 1880. Ryan was a leading Democrat in Wisconsin during his era, and was the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in 1863. Prior to his appointment to the Supreme Court, Ryan was city attorney of

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

for four years. Earlier in his career, Ryan participated in several noteworthy cases as an attorney. He served as prosecutor for the U.S. government in the fugitive slave cases against abolitionist Sherman Booth in the 1850s. He prosecuted the impeachment against Wisconsin circuit court judge Levi Hubbell in 1853, and also argued the case of Republican gubernatorial candidate Coles Bashford in his lawsuit to overturn the original results of the 1855 Wisconsin gubernatorial election.

Early life and career

Born in

County Meath County Meath ( ; or simply , ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is bordered by County Dublin to the southeast, County ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, Ryan emigrated to the United States in 1830, originally settling in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. In 1836, Ryan became a United States citizen and was admitted to the New York bar. He then moved to

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Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, where he married his first wife, Mary Graham. In Chicago, Ryan practiced law, edited a newspaper, and worked as a city attorney. In 1842, he moved north to Racine, in the

Wisconsin Territory The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized and incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belm ...

, and continued his law practice. Ryan was elected to the first Wisconsin Constitutional Convention in 1846, though the constitution produced by that convention was rejected by Wisconsin voters. Politically, Ryan was a Democrat, and was a delegate for Wisconsin to the

1848 Democratic National Convention The 1848 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention that met from Monday May 22 to Friday May 26 in Baltimore, Maryland. It was held to nominate the Democratic Party's candidates for President and Vice president i ...

, which nominated

Lewis Cass Lewis Cass (October 9, 1782June 17, 1866) was a United States Army officer and politician. He represented Michigan in the United States Senate and served in the Cabinets of two U.S. Presidents, Andrew Jackson and James Buchanan. He was also the 1 ...

. His wife, Mary, died in 1847. The following year, Ryan moved his law practice to

Legal career in Wisconsin

Edward George Ryan - Wisconsin Supreme Court - DSC03159

During his years as a lawyer, Ryan was involved in several notable cases in Wisconsin history. In 1853, he was the prosecutor in the

impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...

of Wisconsin circuit court judge Levi Hubbell, on charges of corruption. Hubbell was acquitted by the Wisconsin Senate, though, later in life, he would be forced to resign his role as a U.S. Attorney due to similar corruption charges. Ryan was notoriously bad-tempered, and his prosecution of the case against Hubbell was described as viciously personal, and motivated by personal grievances. In 1854 and 1855, Ryan was the attorney for the United States in the case of '' Ableman v. Booth'', where he prosecuted

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world. The first country to fully outlaw slavery was Kingdom of France, France in 1315, but it was later used ...

Sherman Booth for assisting a runaway slave in violation of the

Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 The Fugitive Slave Act or Fugitive Slave Law was a law passed by the 31st United States Congress on September 18, 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850 between Southern interests in slavery and Northern Free-Soilers. The Act was one ...

. In the Booth case, Ryan was opposed by fellow future-justice,

Byron Paine Byron Paine (October 10, 1827January 13, 1871) was an American lawyer, judge, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court from 1867 until his death in 1871, and also served on the court from 1859 to 1864, interrupting ...

. Paine prevailed at the Wisconsin Supreme Court, but the decision was later overturned by the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...

. Booth would ultimately be pardoned by U.S. President

James Buchanan James Buchanan Jr. ( ; April 23, 1791June 1, 1868) was the 15th president of the United States, serving from 1857 to 1861. He also served as the United States Secretary of State, secretary of state from 1845 to 1849 and represented Pennsylvan ...

. After the contested gubernatorial election of 1855, Ryan represented Republican candidate Coles Bashford in his attempt to overturn the apparent victory of incumbent Governor William A. Barstow. In the case ''Atty. Gen. ex rel. Bashford v. Barstow'', Ryan prevailed and the Wisconsin Supreme Court threw out a number of fraudulent votes, awarding the election to Bashford. In 1870, Ryan was elected City Attorney of Milwaukee, and held that office until his appointment to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. In 1874 Chief Justice Luther S. Dixon resigned from the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Governor William Robert Taylor appointed Ryan to finish his term. He was re-elected in 1875 and would remain Chief Justice until his death in 1880.

Family and personal life

Ryan's married his first wife, Mary Graham, in December 1842. They had one child, Hugh, before her death in 1847. Ryan married his second wife, Caroline Willard, in 1850. They had seven children together. But Ryan's quick temper led to problems in the marriage, and she left him in 1872, taking their children with her. Ryan died at his home in Madison on October 19, 1880, and was buried at Forest Home Cemetery in Milwaukee.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryan, Edward George Lawyers from County Meath Lawyers from New York City Lawyers from Chicago Lawyers from Milwaukee Politicians from Racine, Wisconsin Wisconsin lawyers Chief justices of the Wisconsin Supreme Court Justices of the Wisconsin Supreme Court 1810 births 1880 deaths 19th-century Wisconsin state court judges 19th-century American lawyers Wisconsin pioneers