United States Naval Academy Photo

He earned the Medal of Honor on September 1, 1923 in Yokohama, Japan. He was awarded the Medal in a White House ceremony by President Calvin Coolidge. He was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on August 5, 1901.

He died on January 28, 1970, following a long military career, and was buried in Section 34 of Arlington National Cemetery.

Rank and organization: Ensign, U.S. Navy. Place and date: Yokohama, Japan, 1  September 1923. Entered service at: Louisiana. Born: 5 August 1901, New Orleans, Louisiana. 

Citation:

For heroism in effecting the rescue of a woman from the burning Grand Hotel, Yokohama, Japan, on 1 September 1923. Following the earthquake and fire which occurred in Yokohama on 1 September, Ens. Ryan, with complete disregard for his own life, extricated a woman from the Grand Hotel, thus saving her life. His heroic conduct upon this occasion reflects the greatest credit on himself and on the U.S. Navy, of which he is a part. (Medal presented by President Coolidge at the White House on 15 March 1924.)

President Coolidge decorating Lieutenant Thomas J. Ryan with the Congressional Medal of Honor
United States Navy Photo

Photo Courtesy of Russell C. Jacobs, July 2007