Matthew J. Ryan (April 27, 1932 – March 29, 2003) was an American politician from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

who served as a Republican member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

for Delaware County from 1963 to 1968 and from the 168th district from 1969 to 2003 including as Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1981 to 1983 and again from 1995 to 2003.

Early life and education

Ryan was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and was a 1950 graduate of

Saint Joseph's Preparatory School St. Joseph's Preparatory School, known as "St. Joe's Prep" or simply "The Prep", is an urban, private, Catholic, college preparatory school run by the Society of Jesus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The school was founded in 1851 ...

, in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. He earned a degree from

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Saint Thom ...

in 1954 and a

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Some law degrees are professional degrees that are prerequisites or serve as preparation for legal careers. These generally include the Bachelor of Civil Law, Bachelor of Laws, an ...

from

Villanova University School of Law The Charles Widger School of Law (known as Villanova Law) is the law school of Villanova University, a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was opened in 1953 and is approved by the American Bar Association (A ...

in 1959. Ryan served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

from 1954 to 1956.

Career

Ryan was first elected to represent the 168th legislative district in the

in 1962. He served in the House Republican Leadership as Policy Committee Chairman from 1971 to 1972. He was the Republican Whip from 1973 to 1978, with 1973–1974 spent as the Majority Whip. He was elected Republican Leader in 1979–1980, with those years in the majority. He served as Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1981 to 1982. In 1983, the Republicans became the minority and Ryan became the Republican Leader again. In 1995, the Republicans regained the majority and elected Ryan Speaker of the House, a position he held until his death in 2003. In 2002, the political website

PoliticsPA PoliticsPA.com is a website centered on the politics of Pennsylvania. Content The website reports on political and campaign news in Pennsylvania, from the state legislature up to federal races. The editors write occasional features, like the ...

named him to the list of "Smartest Legislators," calling him "quick and sharp with his Irish wit from the Speaker's rostrum" and a "man of true wisdom." In a 2002

Feature story A feature story is a piece of non-fiction writing about news covering a single topic in detail. A feature story is a type of soft news, primarily focused on entertainment rather than a higher level of professionalism. The main subtypes are ...

designating politicians with yearbook superlatives, he was named the "Most Popular."

Legacy

The Matthew J. Ryan Veterinary Hospital at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

is named in his honor. In 1999, the Capitol Annex of the

Pennsylvania State Capitol The Pennsylvania State Capitol is the seat of government for the U.S. state of Pennsylvania located in downtown Harrisburg. The building was designed by architect Joseph Miller Huston in 1902 and completed in 1906 in a Beaux-Arts style with de ...

building in

Harrisburg Harrisburg ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat, seat of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County. With a population of 50, ...

was renamed the Speaker Matthew J. Ryan Legislative Office Building.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryan, Matthew J. 1932 births 2003 deaths 20th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly 21st-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly Pennsylvania lawyers Politicians from Philadelphia Speakers of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives United States Marines St. Joseph's Preparatory School alumni Villanova University alumni Villanova University School of Law alumni 20th-century American lawyers

Early life and education

Career

Legacy

See also

References

External links