>I am not sure whether or not this family was Protestant but an Ida Leitzke >married Thomas Ryan of Canada at Merrill Presbyterian Church. He was a >railroad engineer. Ida Leitzke would be my husband's great aunt. Let me know >if you have any possible connection. > >Beth Raasch > Dear Beth, This is pretty much all I know and it isn't really enough to make any solid connections. My great grandfather, Ed Ryan, went to Merrill with his brother (name unknown). The whole family (their father, grandfather, uncles, etc.) were railroad people in Western NY. There were Canadian cousins but they would have been Catholic. Ed's parents were Jere Ryan (b. PA 1839) and Margaret A. Chamberlain. He married Olive Baldwin in 1885 in NY and moved to Merrill shortly thereafter. They had seven children, only three of whom survived childhood and only two of whom had registered births. Ed was supposedly "the first telegrapher in the west" but I think there's some confusion there as it doesn't seem to fit the dates. First telegraph dates from 1840s & 1850s and Ed wasn't born until 1859 and didn't make it to Merrill until 1885. Thomas is not among the names anyone has turned up for Ed's brothers. We have John, Mike & George but these are from a letter in which Ed's widow is trying to recall their names. There was a cousin Thomas Ryan but he stayed in NY. Anyway, Ed & his brother were supposed to be real carousers and were known for their prowess in and enjoyment of fist fights. Evidently they were legendary. Thank you for your info.