Isaac F. Ryan and Blanche R. (Beedle) Ryan
Files
Title
Isaac F. Ryan and Blanche R. (Beedle) Ryan
Subject
Ryan, Isaac Franklin (1883-1971)
Ryan, Blanche R. Beedle (1888-1961)
Description
Portrait photograph of Isaac Franklin Ryan and Blanche R. (Beedle) Ryan when they were young.
Blanche was the youngest of six children. Her parents were Noah F. (1847-1927) and Margaret (Basye) (1846-1930) Beedle. Her father had served as a Private in Company K of the Virginia 7th Cavalry Regiment, during the Civil War.
Blanche’s early life was like any other. She married Isaac Franklin Ryan (1883-1971) in 1906. He was the son of Edward and Lydia Frances (Walters) Ryan. Isaac worked as a laborer in 1910 and when he registered for the WWI draft in 1918, he was a fireman for the railroad in Brunswick, Maryland, while his wife, Blanche, lived at their home in Mt. Jackson.
By 1920, Isaac was a shipbuilder in a shipyard and Blanche was caring for three sons: Freeman Lester (1906-1980), Floyd Elmer (1909-1949) and Harry W. (1916-1960). They lived on a farm in the Ashby District.
Sometime after 1920, Blanche’s mental health deteriorated and by 1930, when the census found her, she was institutionalized in the “Western State Hospital for the Insane” in Staunton, Augusta County, where she lived for over 30 years. She died, still a patient there, and was buried in Mt. Jackson.
Her two oldest sons went to live with an Aunt and Uncle in Washington D.C., where they found jobs. The youngest, Harry, was only 12 years old in 1930. He appeared as a “boarder” to Fannie Weaver in the Ashby District of the County and attended school.
We were unable to find Blanche’s husband, Isaac, in the 1930 census, but he lived in Washington D.C. in 1942, when he registered for the WWII draft. At that time, he was working for B&O railroad.
He lived in Timberville at the end of his life and was a retired railroad worker when he died.
Blanche was the youngest of six children. Her parents were Noah F. (1847-1927) and Margaret (Basye) (1846-1930) Beedle. Her father had served as a Private in Company K of the Virginia 7th Cavalry Regiment, during the Civil War.
Blanche’s early life was like any other. She married Isaac Franklin Ryan (1883-1971) in 1906. He was the son of Edward and Lydia Frances (Walters) Ryan. Isaac worked as a laborer in 1910 and when he registered for the WWI draft in 1918, he was a fireman for the railroad in Brunswick, Maryland, while his wife, Blanche, lived at their home in Mt. Jackson.
By 1920, Isaac was a shipbuilder in a shipyard and Blanche was caring for three sons: Freeman Lester (1906-1980), Floyd Elmer (1909-1949) and Harry W. (1916-1960). They lived on a farm in the Ashby District.
Sometime after 1920, Blanche’s mental health deteriorated and by 1930, when the census found her, she was institutionalized in the “Western State Hospital for the Insane” in Staunton, Augusta County, where she lived for over 30 years. She died, still a patient there, and was buried in Mt. Jackson.
Her two oldest sons went to live with an Aunt and Uncle in Washington D.C., where they found jobs. The youngest, Harry, was only 12 years old in 1930. He appeared as a “boarder” to Fannie Weaver in the Ashby District of the County and attended school.
We were unable to find Blanche’s husband, Isaac, in the 1930 census, but he lived in Washington D.C. in 1942, when he registered for the WWII draft. At that time, he was working for B&O railroad.
He lived in Timberville at the end of his life and was a retired railroad worker when he died.
Creator
Morrison Studio
Source
Morrison Studio Collection - Shenandoah County Historical Society
Publisher
Shenandoah County Library
Date
The glass plate negative of this image was stored in a box labeled "1904".
Contributor
Identified in 2025 by library staff based on Blanche's photograph found elsewhere in the collection.
Biographical information was compiled from public records.
Rights
IN COPYRIGHT - NON-COMMERCIAL USE PERMITTED
Relation
Blanche R. (Beedle) Ryan appears in Morrison Studio Collection numbers 000407 and 026425.
Isaac F. Ryan appears in Morrison Studio Collection images 018652, 026425, 026593, and 026823.
Identifier
026425
Original Format
Glass Negative
Collection
Citationzork
Morrison Studio, “Isaac F. Ryan and Blanche R. (Beedle) Ryan,” Shenandoah County Library Archives, accessed December 5, 2025, https://archives.countylib.org/items/show/56098.
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