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Was Bill Ryan Thomas Lynch?
The photos below, plus the evidence I have gathered over the years, is enough to convince me that Bill Ryan, who rode with Jesse James from 1879 until 1881, was really Thomas Albert Lynch. Looking closely at the two photos, notice how both men's right ear protrudes farther out than the left ear; the facial structure is the same, mustaches, eyes,  nose, and expression - all the same.
William "Bill" Ryan - from the photo taken at the  Barrel Factory.
Thomas Albert Lynch, alias "Ben Malloy" alias "Bill Ryan?"
The reasons I believe William "Bill" Ryan was really Thomas Albert Lynch, alias Ben Malloy:

1. Bill Ryan was imprisoned in 1881 - Tom Lynch "disappeared"  in 1881.

2. Bill Ryan was released from prison in April of 1889 - Tom Lynch came to Arkansas using the alias of Ben Malloy in 1889.

3. Jesse James used the alias "John Davis Howard" in Nashville - Tom Lynch's maternal Grandfather was named "John Davis". (Bill Ryan stayed with Jesse James sometimes in Nashville).

4. Jesse James used the alias "J.T. Jackson" while living in Kansas City - Tom Lynch has a grandson named "J.T. Jackson". Jesse also used the alias THOMAS Howard, which of course was Thomas Lynch's name.

5. Bill Ryan (according to prison records) shares the same physical description as Tom Lynch - even to the scar each man had on his chin.

6. Bill Ryan and Tom Lynch were the same age; both claimed to have fought with the Confederacy; both men's parents were dead by 1881; both were notorious for getting drunk; both men could read and write.

7. Bill Ryan was using the alias "TOM Hill" when he was arrested in Nashville in 1881.

8. Last but not least,  Thomas Lynch SAID he rode with Jesse James Gang for a "short while".
The last house Tom Lynch built when he lived in Bear Creek, Searcy Co. AR. His grave is a few yards to the left of the house. The cave he made whiskey in is to the front and left of the house.
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