Ryan, William

Flourished: Logan County, Illinois

William Ryan presumably supported American Party candidate Millard Fillmore in the 1856 presidential election. Abraham Lincoln sent Lawrence a form letter on September 9, 1856 asking him to reconsider his support of Fillmore in favor of Republican candidate John C. Fremont.

Abraham Lincoln to William Ryan (form letter); Philip G. Auchampaugh, “Campaign of 1856,” Dictionary of American History, rev. ed. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1976), 1:420-21.