Tom Ryman

Thomas "Tom" Green Ryman (October 12, 1841 – December 23, 1904), known as Capt. Tom Ryman, was a riverboat captain and riverboat company owner and businessman from Tennessee. He built the Union Gospel Tabernacle, later known as the Ryman Auditorium, a live performance venue and National Historic Landmark in Nashville, which is named in his honor.[1][2]

Tom Ryman
Born
Thomas Green Ryman

(1841-10-12)October 12, 1841
Tennessee U.S.
DiedDecember 23, 1904(1904-12-23) (aged 63)
Nashville, Tennessee U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Other namesCapt. Ryman
Capt. Tom
Tom Ryman
T.G. Ryman
Occupation(s)Riverboat captain
Businessman
Years active1865–1902
Known forRyman Auditorium
SpouseMary Elizabeth Baugh

Early life

Ryman was born south of Nashville, the oldest male child of Capt. John Ryman and Sarah “Sallie” Ryman's five children, three older sisters and a younger brother.[3][4]

Career

In 1864, Ryman followed his father into the riverboat business and bought his first steamer. He started three river businesses that he consolidated into the Ryman Line in 1885.[5] At its peak, his Nashville-based fleet consisted of more than 30 boats, making him one of the most successful steamboat men on the Cumberland River.[1] He also owned a waterfront saloon, at one time the largest in the city.

Union Gospel Tabernacle

After hearing the Rev. Sam Jones speak at an outdoor tent revival meeting in Nashville in 1885,[1] Ryman proposed the construction of a tabernacle that would allow the people of Nashville to attend large-scale revivals indoors.[6] Ryman had attended one of Jones' 1885 revivals with the intent to heckle, but was instead converted into a devout Christian, and soon after pledged to build the tabernacle.

Construction took seven years to complete and cost US$100,000 (equivalent to $3,257,037 in 2022).[7][8] However, Jones held his first revival at the site on May 25, 1890, with only the building's foundation and six-foot (1.8 m) walls standing.[8] Architect Hugh Cathcart Thompson designed the structure. Exceeding its construction budget, the tabernacle opened US$20,000 (equivalent to $651,407 in 2022) in debt. Jones sought to name the tabernacle in Ryman's honor, but Ryman denied the request several times. After Ryman's death, the Tabernacle was renamed in his honor.[9]

Thomas Ryman Statue at the Ryman Auditorium

Personal life

In 1869, Ryman married Mary Elizabeth Ryman (née Baugh).[10][11][12] They had seven children.[13]

Death and funeral

Ryman died in 1904 at his home in Nashville.[5] An estimated 4,000 people attended his funeral, held at the Tabernacle on Christmas Day. The Rev. Jones spoke at the service and once more proposed changing the Tabernacle's name to the Ryman Auditorium.[14] He asked all who agreed with the suggestion to rise. According to The Nashville American's December 26, 1904, account of the service, "as one person, the thousands who heard him were on their feet."[7][15] Tom Ryman's final resting place is in Mount Olivet Cemetery (Nashville).

See also

References
  1. Davis, Louise (July 13, 2014). "The real story behind the Ryman Auditorium". The Tennessean.
  2. Byrne, Ed (June 27, 2016). "Before It Was the Ryman". Library & Archives News. Tennessee State Library and Archives.
  3. "Thomas Ryman: United States Census, 1860". FamilySearch. June 22, 1860.
  4. Coggins, Daisy Ryman. The Early Life of My Father. Ryman Auditorium, Tennessee State Library and Archives.
  5. "Capt. Ryman Is Dead: Prominent River and Churchman Passes Away Will Have Public Funeral. Revs. Sam Jones and George Stewart to Conduct Services at Tabernacle Accumulated a Fortune and Dispensed Charity With Lavish Hand". The Nashville American. December 24, 1904. p. 3. ProQuest 951949673.
  6. Williams, Peter W. (2000). Houses of God: Region, Religion, and Architecture in the United States. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press. pp. 123–124. ISBN 978-0-252-06917-8. OCLC 47361692.
  7. "Captain Tom Ryman". Ryman Auditorium. November 2, 2016.
  8. "Interactive Timeline: History". Ryman Auditorium. October 22, 2016.
  9. Justus, Jennifer (2016). "Where the Soul of Nashville Never Dies: the Ryman". The Bitter Southerner.
  10. "T G Ryman: Tennessee State Marriage Index, 1780-2002". FamilySearch. February 2, 1869.
  11. "Mary Elizabeth Baugh Ryman". Ryman Auditorium, Tennessee State Library and Archives.
  12. Roundtree, Mrs. John A. "Sis Tom" (1869). A Reconstruction Wedding: Mary Elizabeth Baugh and Thos. G. Ryman: 1869. Nashville, TN: Ryman Auditorium, Tennessee State Library and Archives.
  13. "Historical Markers - Nashville Sites: Captain Ryman's Home". Nashville.gov.
  14. "Thomas Green Ryman Historical Marker". The Historical Marker Database. June 16, 2016.
  15. "Capt. T. G. Ryman: Funeral Service is Held for Him at Tabernacle with 4,000 Persons Present. Revs. Sam P. Jones and George Stewart Come Here to Pay Their Last Sad Tributes to His Memory -- Most Affecting Scenes Are Witnessed". The Nashville American. December 26, 1904. p. 5. ProQuest 938074370.

Further reading
  • Coke, Fletch (1982). Captain Ryman at Home: His Family and Neighbors on Rutledge Hill. Nashville, TN: J & J Printers. OCLC 8650326.
  • Davis, Louise Littleton (1983). "Steamboatin' Tom Ryman". Frontier Tales of Tennessee. Gretna, LA: Pelican Publishing Co. ISBN 978-0-882-89084-5. OCLC 970744461.
  • Gossett, Charmaine B., ed. (2001). Captain Tom Ryman: His Life and Legacy. Franklin, TN: Hillsboro Press. ISBN 978-1-577-36239-5. OCLC 48544688.
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