Frances Haskell | |
|---|---|
| Member of theWashington House of Representatives from the38th[1] district | |
| In office January 10, 1921 – January 12, 1925 | |
| Preceded by | Frances Haskell |
| Succeeded by | Dean C. McLean |
| In office January 12, 1931 – January 9, 1933 | |
| Preceded by | Alfred J. Smith |
| Succeeded by | C. E. McIntosh |
| Member of theWashington Senate from the28th district | |
| In office January 9, 1933 – January 11, 1937 | |
| Preceded by | Ray Jacobus |
| Succeeded by | Monty Percival |
| Member of theWashington House of Representatives from the28th district | |
| In office January 13, 1941 – January 11, 1943 | |
| Preceded by | Gerald G. Dixon |
| Succeeded by | Winifred C. P. Meddins |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1865-08-06)August 6, 1865[2] Chillicothe, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | January 20, 1943(1943-01-20) (aged 77) Tacoma, Washington, U.S. |
| Political party | |
| Spouse | Ella Ryan |
| Occupation | Newspaper editor |
John Henry Ryan (1865 - 1943) was a businessman, newspaperman, and state legislator in the U.S. state of Washington.[2][3] He was a member of theNAACP.[4]
Ryan and his wife, Ella, publishedThe Weekly and thenThe Forum newspapers.[5]
He was born inChillicothe, Ohio and was one of 12 children born to George R. and Mary Elizabeth (Gatliffe) Ryan.[2] His grandmother was Cherokee.[3]
He married Ella Alexander and moved toSpokane, Washington in 1889.[2] They briefly moved to Seattle before settling inTacoma, Washington in 1903.[2] The Ryans briefly publishedThe Weekly, the city's first black-owned newspaper, but abandoned the paper to startThe Forum in July 1903.[3] John and Ell were charter members of the Tacoma NAACP and the Republican Party.[2] Ryan compiledRyan's Legislative Manual published in 1907.[3]
Ryan was elected to the38th district of theWashington House of Representatives in 1921 as a member of theFarmer–Labor Party.[1][3] He was the only African American serving in the Washington House of Representatives at the time. He helped defeat a proposal for an anti-intermarriage bill.[2][6]
Ryan would serve in the 38th district from 1921 to 1925, and again from 1931 to 1933 as a Republican.[1] He then served in theWashington State Senate for the28th district from 1933 to 1937 as a Democrat. In that session, he opposed a proposed bill that would require fingerprinting vagrants.[3] Ryan served in the House again for the 28th district from 1941 to 1932.[1]
He changed his name to Senator J. H. Ryan.[3] He publishedRyan's Weekly.[3]
Ryan died on January 20, 1943, in a private nursing home.[3]