Edgar L. Ryder

Edgar Lee Ryder (February 13, 1860 – June 7, 1936) was an American journalist, lawyer, and politician from New York.

Life Ryder was born on February 13, 1860, in Ossining, New York, the son of dry goods merchant William E. Ryder and Josephine Urmy.

Ryder attended public school and went to a military academy prior to attending Columbia College. He was a classmate of Nicholas Murray Butler and graduated from Columbia in 1882. He then moved to Minnesota and worked as a newspaper reporter in Minneapolis, St. Paul, and Duluth. In 1885, he co-founded the Northwest Trade, a commercial publication, in Minneapolis. He served as the paper's publisher until 1889, when he sold out to his partner and returned to Ossining. He then began studying law and was admitted to the bar in 1891. He would practice law in Ossining and White Plains as a trial lawyer until his death. and 1894. While in the Assembly, he submitted bills related to the employment of State prison convicts, appropriations for the enlargement of Sing Sing, and permitting the employment of Christian Scientists as physicians. In the 1902 New York state election, he ran for Governor on an Independent-Democratic ticket, and while he lost his candidacy helped get Republican candidate Benjamin B. Odell elected Governor. He later became a supporter of the single tax theory and spoke throughout the state on behalf of the Henry George program.