Ryan (given name) in 2005–2007. "Ryan" as a male given name has persisted in popularity for the thirty-year period of 1976–2006 in the 10th to 20th rank; the name appeared in the top thousand for the first time in 1946 and gained steadily in popularity until leveling off in the 1970s. Its ascendency in the U.S. has been traced, in part, to its use by American actor Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal who used the stage name Ryan O'Neal in the popular series "Peyton Place" from 1964 to 1969. "Ryan" gained popularity as a given name for girls in the 1970s. It first appeared
John R. Neal the war, he married to Mary E. C. Brown, daughter of Franklin Brown. They had three children; Dr. John R. Neal, Jr., Professor of Law at the University of Tennessee, and Scopes Trial attorney; Commander George F. Neal, U. S. N. and D. S. O. from King George V for distinguished service during World War I for sinking a German submarine, and Navy Cross from Congress for loyal service; and Amanda Neal Wheelock. During the Civil War, Neal enlisted in the Confederate Army and was elected captain of a Cavalry troop, which afterward became a part of the 16th Battalion,