Matthew & Alba Ryan

Alba Ryan was one of Washington's most active women in the 1970s and 1980s, and Matthew Ryan made his name in Peoria during the same time frame.

Alba Rita Renzi was born July 5, 1928, in Quincy, Massachusetts, and spent much of her young life on the East Coast.  In 1954, she married Matthew Ryan Jr. in New Hampshire.

The couple and their three children moved to central Illinois in 1969, settling in Washington on Yorkshire Drive.  Matthew worked for the Foster & Gallagher corporation and was transferred to the Peoria area.

By the mid 1970s, both Matthew and Alba were getting involved in politics.  Both were very involved in democratic committees in Peoria and Tazewell counties. In November, 1975, Matthew announced his candidacy to unseat Bob Michel in the US House.  In March 1976, Ryan decisively won the Democratic primary, setting up a head-to-head matchup with Michel in the November election.  Michel would prevail in that election, winning 57.7% of the vote.

In Washington, Alba served as an officer of the Town Club and the Women's Club, and taught CCD classes at St. Patrick's School.  In the 1970s through the mid-1980s, she also served as "picture lady" at various Washington grade schools, teaching special lessons on fine art with her trusty opaque projector.

In the late 1970s, Matthew made news in a different way.  He had owned a property in downtown Peoria and hoped to open a restaurant.  Developer Raymond Becker was looking to construct what we would come to know as the Twin Towers on the same spot.  Becker had no problem purchasing all the properties in the area except one: Ryan's. Ryan didn't want to sell.  He opened Gorman's Tap during the negotiations in the Fulton Street building.

The standoff would make national headlines in 1980 as a David-versus-Goliath story.  Locally, the story would drag from 1979-1982 when Becker and Ryan finally agreed to a deal.

In 1980, Matthew and Alba were among the seven charter "golden" members of the Washington Historical Society, the highest donor level for the fledgling group.  Alba would continue to serve in various capacities for the Washington Historical Society throughout their first decade.  She was awarded the Washingtonian Award in 1980.

Matthew died May 1, 1988, at the young age of 61. 

In 1991, Alba received an Illinois State Board of Education Award of Merit for her exemplary contributions to Washington schools.  She passed away in 2007 at the age of 78.

Both Matthew and Alba are buried back east at Wollaston Cemetery in Quincy, Massachusetts.