Book of Ryans - The American Experience
The American Civil War
The Civil War and its aftermath was perhaps the greatest test of America's resolve since its beginnings in 1776. There was no single factor which was identified as causing the war between the states, rather it was a culmination of events which eventually led to the revolt between North and South. If one factor was more dominant, then the single most direct cause was slavery. Slavery was abolished in the North in 1848, but was still an important institution in the agrarian industry of the South. By the mid-19th century, most countries had abolished slavery, however, because the economy of the South depended upon cheap labor for agriculture, especially labor to work the cotton fields, it continued to prosper. As the demand for cotton multiplied, the use of slaves to work these fields propagated, principally since many immigrants chose to work in factories where the work was easier.
The South's prestige in Congress remained for most of the century before the Civil War; yet this influence eroded after political compromises were made between 1820 and 1850. With these concessions, the U.S. Government allowed the South to retain slavery, but the importation of slaves and the limit on expanding slavery in new states helped reduce their societal prestige. These compromises eventually led to the Kansas-Nebraska Act which legislated that slavery would be allowed only if the voters of the territory ratified it. This Act eliminated slavery in several border states where impassioned reactions regarding both sides of the issue were the strongest, and violent altercations from abolitionists, such as John Brown, simply made matters worse. War was inevitable, and the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency in 1861 sealed the fate of a civil uprising in the United States. South Carolina was the first to declare secession from the Union, and shortly afterwards Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and Arkansas joined South Carolina's move and joined under a confederate union. This new confederacy developed a pact of union in which one of its most important elements was the creation of a military to defend its rights.
A few months after Lincoln's inauguration speech, the South claimed a victory at Fort Sumter near Charleston, South Carolina. This conquest prompted more southern states to join the Confederacy including North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia; in the meantime this event also triggered a formal declaration of war between the North and South. Once war was proclaimed, many men both young and old enlisted in the military, and the Civil War rosters showed a heavy enlistment of Irishmen on both sides. On the Northern side, Dunn and Lennox estimated that at least 40% of the almost 3,000,000 enlistments were soldiers of Irish descent.[1] New York also provided similar examples: "Of the 337,800 men furnished by the state of New York, 51,206 were natives of Ireland out of a total of 134,178 foreign born, or 39 per cent."[2] The number of Irish born recruits in the New York armies was well documented; however, the majority comprised two regiments, among which the largest was the 69th New York. The 69th New York Regiment was made up of Meagher's Irish Brigades and the Corcoran Legion, and had a reputation of being a hard drinking group of soldiers. Pay registers and officer journals recorded that any officer could buy as much whiskey as he wanted, and they further recorded frequent complaints from soldiers who could not sleep because of all the screaming and singing that proceeded from the officers quarters. Massachusetts also harbored a large contingent of Irish recruits with its 9th, 28th and 29th regiments. The Irish regiments contributed to the northern success, and their courageous actions were well noted in some of the fiercest battles fought during this conflict. At the battle of Fredericksberg, the Bay Street Irish of the 28th Massachusetts were one of the three Irish regiments fighting that day. There were 1400 men in each unit and each man wore a sprig of evergreen in his cap to signify his Irishness. After this long and hard-fought battle only 250 men survived. Another Irish Brigade, Meagher's Brigade, also exhibited great heroism when they broke rebel lines at Antitem, reached the stone wall at Fredericksburg, and finally carried on a last ditch fight with the Southern armies at Chancellorsville. These heroic actions would pay off for the Irish after the war. The Irish were despised for their enlistment in the military prior to the Civil War, but it was their participation during this conflict which deflated anti-Irish feelings commonly held by the general population.
The South attracted large numbers of Irish recruits as well. The Louisiana Tigers, an Irish regiment, fought gallantly at Gettysburg. Gettysburg was one of the bloodiest battles of the war: 23,049 deaths for the North, and 27,000 deaths for the South.[3] In addition to the Louisiana Tigers, there were other regiments which fought at Gettysburg including Pickett's Division, led by Major-General George Pickett. It was his division which led a daring charge that is still remembered as one of the more important military maneuvers during this famous battle.
It was not universal patriotism or belief in a cause that spurred the Irish to enlist in large numbers, although these reasons alone cannot be discounted. A more likely reason was that there were many young men in need of work, and the army was one of the few places where they would they could find steady employment. Some historians have discounted the Irishmen's high rate of enlistment by suggesting that volunteerism, based upon a percent of the total ethnic population, was higher among other "races". Whichever claim is correct, the total number of Americans of Irish descent participating in the Civil War was high, and their enlistment certainly enhanced their image among the general population.
Before the American Civil War began, a potato famine spread throughout Europe and caused widespread disaster for many families who depended upon this crop for food. These famine immigrants found their way to America which brought in a wave of uneducated and unskilled laborers into the American workforce. The repercussions of this migration caused the end of competition for unskilled white laborers which forced the pay scale downward. This forced many immigrants including the Irish and established native-born Americans to work in sweat shops or the coal mines as the demand for cheap labor increased. By the 1860s, Irish coal miners, notably those in Pennsylvania, began complaining about the living and working conditions inside the mines. They were most vocal about the wages that went back to the 'company store' and the mistreatment by their Protestant supervisors. These anxieties surfaced again and intensified after the introduction of the military draft. The miners felt that they were being forced into the war by their employers, and many of them saw the draft as an attempt to silence the local disturbances and related labor unrest. Labor leaders also charged that mine bosses were sending names of undesirables and agitators to military authorities, and as Bruce Cotton noted there were "stories told of drafted miners being tied to cavalrymen's stirrups and marched off to war willy-nilly."[4] These events led to the creation of underground subversive groups like the Molly McGuires, although some historians now contend that they may have not existed at all, but rather were created as a result of the hysteria of the war and the mine riots. Whether they existed or not, the militancy of the Irish miner increased.
Although the Irish did not share a universal sentiment to the northern cause, the vast majority did so. Some have speculated that the Irish supported the Union because they equated slavery to the many years their forefathers suffered slave-like conditions in Ireland; however, this explanation seems too simplistic. It is probably more accurate to assume that they had no opinion regarding slavery as Cotton noted when he wrote that, "They were ignorant Immigrants and they had no better idea than anyone else of the ultimate meaning of war for freedom."[5] Regardless of the reasons, many enlisted in strong numbers including the Ryans. Some of the more notorious have been described in the "Who Was Who in the Civil War" including James Henry Rion, Thomas Ryan, and Johathan George Ryan[6].
James Henry Rion
The case of James H. Rion demonstrated the poor state of command that existed under Brigadier General Nathan G. Evans during his service in South Carolina. Rion, a native of Canada, was a Colonel of the South Carolina militia at the outbreak of the Civil War. His war assignments included Colonel, 6th South Carolina (early 1861); captain, Company B, 7th south Carolina battalion (November 13, 1861); Major, 7th South Carolina Battalion (May 5, 1863); temporarily commanding 22nd South Caroline (early 1863); and lieutenant Colonel, 7th south Carolina Battalion (June 24, 1864).[7]
Thomas Ryan
Bounty jumpers were common during the Civil War, and Thomas Ryan was despised as one of the war's worst offenders. Thomas Ryan was credited with enlisting 30 times, collecting the bounty offered for enlistment, and deserted at the first chance he received. Ryan was caught by authorities in Indianapolis in 1864 and executed before a firing squad. President Lincoln, known for his commuting of death sentences, did not intervene in this case and by year's end, Ryan was dead.[8] Even though he collected the bounty 30 times, the worst offender title goes to John O'Conner. He was credited with 32 criminal offenses.
Jonathan George Ryan
Lincoln's assassination sparked a wave of terror which transcended all bounds imposed by the constitution, and one of the unfortunate victims was Confederate Captain Jonathan Ryan. Canadian-born Ryan was traveling through the South from late 1859 until the Civil War began. The Toronto printer finally caught the war fever and joined an Arkansas regiment in early 1862. Initially he was detailed as a clerk in the medical service but joined his regiment for the battle of Corinth, where he was wounded and captured. He made his escape while recuperating from his wounds. After serving again with his unit, he was directed to raise a company which served in the Volunteer and Conscript Bureau rounding up draft dodgers. Early in 1864 the company became Company B, 12th Mississippi Cavalry, and Ryan was detailed in charge of a horse depot in Talladega, Alabama. In September he was demoted to second lieutenant in Captain Johnson's Company of special service troops operating along the Mississippi River, often behind Union lines. At the close of the year he was restored to the rank of Captain. However, he never raised the unit because he was sick for the remainder of the war. On May 4, 1865, General Richard Taylor surrendered his department, which included Ryan, who was paroled on May 12 upon condition that he not again serve the Confederacy until exchanged. However, Ryan's troubles started with an angry letter to the editor of a Jackson, Mississippi, newspaper praising the assassination of Lincoln. He penned the letter on April 26, 1865, before he was surrendered. In the crazy times following the President's death facts such as these were often ignored. On the basis of an anonymous letter, Ryan was arrested on July 22, 1865, in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was trying to make arrangements to reach Canada. He was held four months without a trial or even being told why he was being confined, much of the time with ball and chain. Letters from Union officers stating that Ryan had written to the editor before his parole were of no avail. On November 5, 1865, following a letter to President Johnson and imprisonment in Memphis, Washington, and Vicksburg, Ryan was freed without an explanation of the cause of his incarceration. Becoming a lawyer in Chicago, he petitioned the authorities for 20 years before finding out that it was his letter to the editor that had caused him so much trouble. He never received his personal belongings seized at the time of his arrest. During his imprisonment, the press wondered about the mysterious prisoner, speculating that it was John Surratt. But it was just an unfortunate soldier who was a little too free with his pen.[9]
Congressional Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the United States' highest commendation, and is awarded to service men within the army, navy, and other entities of the armed services. It is given to any enlisted officer or soldier who has distinguished himself by gallantry and intrepidy at the risk of his life, above and beyond the call of duty, in action involving combat with the enemy.
The Congressional medal of honor was authorized by Congress in 1862 and instituted by Abraham Lincoln. The medal is a bronze five-pointed star, and the center is lined with 34 stars representing the states of the Union before secession. Minerva also symbolizes America fighting a crouching male figure of discord. This decoration has gone to both native-born and immigrant alike; and of the immigrant recipients, the Irish represented the largest group of foreign-born receivers of this medal. Of the 89 Irish-born Medal of Honor recipients during the Civil War, Peter J. Ryan was among its members. During the Indians campaigns, 71 Irish-born received this medal, of which David Ryan and Dennis Ryan were among this distinguished list of recipients. The commendations, as recorded by the U.S. Adjutant General's office was written as follows:[10]
David Ryan. At Cedar Creek, etc, Mont, oct 21, 1876, to Jan 8, 1877. Private, Company G, 5th U.S. Infantry. Gallantry in actions. Born Ireland.
Dennis Ryan. At Gageby Creek, Indian territory, Dec. 2, 1874. First Sergeant, Company I, 6th U.S. Cavalry. Courage while in command of a detachment. Born Ireland.
Peter J. Ryan. At Winchester, Va. September 19, 1864. Private, Company D, 11th Indiana Infantry. With one companion captured 14 Confederates in the severest part of the battle. No record of residence, born Ireland.
The American frontier after 1870 saw a huge movement of white settlers homesteading open prairie even though conflicts with the American Indians remained unresolved. The American government's relations with the Indian tribes showed a trail of broken treaties and promises, and for the various tribes such as the Sioux, Cheyenne and Comanches, war seemed to be the only alternative open to them. One man who had resisted the white man's intrusion was Quanah, chief of the Comanches. While many members of his tribe decided to live on reservations, Quanah refused to attend the tribal convention which signed away the tribe's territorial claims. The United States military, unhappy with his decision to remain free, decided to punish him for not accepting their offer of pacification. One technique used to bring these renegades into compliance was to destroy their winter food supplies, confiscate their property, and capture their horses. The U.S. military's biggest prize came at an encampment of Comanches along the Red River in Texas where they rounded up over 1000 horses and mules, but because the army found it difficult to control the stock, Colonel Mackenzie ordered the animals killed. This action surprised and frightened Quanah, and it ultimately forced he and his Comanche renegades to surrender in 1875. Sergeant Dennis Ryan participated in these attempts to mollify the Indians in Texas, and was granted a Medal of Honor for leadership displayed during the Gageby Creek raid while chasing a group of Indian warriors:
The successful chase under the direction of 1st Sergeant Dennis Ryan, of Company I, 6th U.S. Cavalry, also belongs to this campaign. The sergeant accompanied by a detachment of 20 men, discovered a large band of Indians on Gageby Creek, Indian territory, December 2d. Fully realizing the danger of attacking so large a force of savages, the sergeant nevertheless, charged and chased them for 10 miles, capturing some 20 ponies and destroying a large amount of property belonging to the hostiles.[11]
The white man continued his westward movement, and when gold was discovered in the Black Hills of Dakota territory, a great rush of prospectors swiftly moved into the Teton Sioux's homeland. The government offered to buy the Black Hills, and when their offer was refused, the Commissioner of Indian Affairs sent an ultimatum to the chiefs ordering them onto reservation lands immediately. They refused to comply with this demand, and were declared lawless renegades which prompted a large force of government soldiers to be sent into the northern plains. A contingent, led by Lieutenant Colonel George Custer, met Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse at the battle of Little Big Horn in 1876, and the government received its greatest injury by the Sioux tribes. The U.S. Cavalry, deeply humiliated by this loss, sent thousands of men into the northern plains to bring the Sioux and Cheyenne Indian tribes to submission. They encountered the Sioux frequently in their push northward, including engagements at Cedar Creek and Wolf Mountain, and eventually these deadly confrontations forced the Sioux Indians into Canada. The Indian battles created numerous heroes, and among the more distinguished heroes were several men whom were awarded the U.S. Congressional Medal of Honor including David Ryan. His troop consisted of 400 men, and in several battles he displayed his heroism and valor while battling the superior force of Indians.
Several other Ryans have also received medals for their heroic deeds. In addition to Peter Ryan who received his medal during the Civil War campaigns, Francis Ryan and Richard Ryan also received this medal for heroism from later wartime events. Francis Ryan, a member of Admiral Seymour's expedition in 1900, received his medal for heroism "in Chinese waters,"[12] in response to a bloody uprising in northern China. The United States sent in military advisors to protect its citizens and commercial interests because Chinese Boxers were destroying everything they considered 'foreign'. The Boxers considered religions other than Asian inspired to be foreign, therefore, countless numbers of Christians and missionaries were murdered as a consequence. Another Ryan to receive this distinguished award was seaman Richard Ryan of Hartford, Connecticut. He received his Medal of Honor for "life-saving"[13] at Norfolk, Virginia, March 4, 1876.