THE ET CETERA CHRONICLES- ONLY THE GOOD DIE YOUNG

ONLY THE GOOD DIE YOUNG - The passing of one of Dublin’s finest young men never made it into a surviving issue of a Dublin paper.  James Ryals Conner, who was born in the city on October 18, 1878 and lived here until the age of three and died at the age of thirty-eight at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. on January 26, 1917. Conner, the son of former Dublin mayor  and Georgia Secretary of Agriculture James J. Conner, was known to have been one of the most profound mathematicians of his day.  He was a chair of the Post Graduate Department of Mathematics and Astronomy at Bryn Mawr College from 1912 to 1915 when he fell ill.

  At the time of his death, Conner was performing mathematical research for Johns Hopkins Hospital.  Ryals was a member of scientific societies in England, Germany and Italy, publishing more than a dozen mathematical and scientific journal articles and books.  He was a regular contributor to the Journal of the American Mathematical Society.

   At the age of fifteen, young James entered the University of Georgia as a sophomore.  In his three years at the university, the teen age genius never scored less than perfect on any mathematical exam.  He finished second in his class in 1898, losing the title of valedictorian when an eye injury late in his senior term prevented him from fully concentrating on his studies.

   In addition to his mathematical skills, James Conner was an accomplished musician, holding a master’s degree in music theory and being proficient in playing several musical instruments. Montgomery Monitor, Feb. 22, 1917, Johns Hopkins Alumni Magazine, Vol. 5, pp. 208-209.