Ridley was born in
Corydon, Indiana on June 22, 1883, to Judge William Ridley. Ridley graduated fourth in a class of 114 from the
United States Military Academy at West Point in 1905. He then served as an instructor at the Army Industrial College. Ridley served as Governor of the Panama Canal Zone from 1936 to 1940. Ridley then served as chief of the U.S. Military Mission to
Iran from 1942 to 1946, for which he was awarded the
Army Distinguished Service Medal, the citation for which reads: His promotion to major general was made permanent on February 27, 1947, and he retired from active duty on June 30, 1947, after forty-two years of service. Ridley died on July 26, 1969, in
Carmel, California. ==References==