Minnesota Resort Industry Oral History Project: Interview with Theresa Ruttger

Titles: Minnesota Resort Industry Oral History Project: Interview with Theresa Ruttger (Supplied title)

Description: BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION: Theresa "Terry" Josephine Ruttger was born in 1961 in Minneapolis. She was the daughter of Joseph William and Carol Ruttger, granddaughter of William Joseph Ruttger, and great-granddaughter of Joe and Josie Ruttger, founders of Ruttger's Bay Lake Lodge. Terry's father and grandfather owned and operated the Whitefish Ruttger from 1936 to 1978. At one time, each of the four sons of Bay Lake Lodge founders Joe and Josie Ruttger operated one or more independent resorts in Minnesota and Florida. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Birth and parents, how family got into resorting. Whitefish resort: early history, how land was acquired, water, facilities, staff. Various family accommodations during off-season. Description of Whitefish, cabins, lodge, pool, tennis courts, gardens, dining room, rec building, and amenities. How children of guests were cared for. Improvements to lodge and cabins. Differentiation of social season versus convention season. Marketing, advertising, staffing, parking, and rates. Responsibilities of Terry, and her brothers, Joe and Bill. Fall cleanup and closing down. Description of a typical day as daughter of owner. Special events, weddings, Mother's Day. Changeover day. Sale of the resort, how it was done, reasons for selling, effect on Terry and her brothers. Relations with other Ruttger resorts. Experiences working at other resorts.

Dates

• 07/21/1997 (Creation)

Creation

• interviewee: Ruttger, Theresa
• interviewer: Fogerty, James E.

Identifiers

• Library Call Number: OH 79
• Accession Number: AV2000.128.5

Holding Type: Oral History - Interview

Project

• Oral History - Project, MHS Collection, project: 'Minnesota Resort Industry Oral History Project' <OH 79>

Quantity: 2 hours sound cassette 47 pages transcript

Format

• Content Category: sound recordings
• Content Category: text

Measurements

• 120 minutes length

Subjects

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