RITTENHOUSE, Rufus

RITTENHOUSE, Rufus. (Hunterdon County, NJ, 1825--Dubuque, June 5, 1898). The best source of information about the life of this Dubuque architect comes from his autobiography. (1) "Life of Rufus Rittenhouse," which was probably written in 1875 or 1876. (2)

He mentions that he ended school at the age of ten and had been taught "to read and write a little, that the would was round, and there there were other continents besides American, but could never learn grammar." They traveled by canal boat to Pittsburgh and from there to Cincinnati, St. Louis, and arrived in Dubuque about May 10, 1836. His family and another moved into a log hut on the corner of Sixth and Main. There were nine people and his father paid $15 per month. (3)

Rittenhouse's father built a mill for someone else and then had the idea of building one for himself. He chose a site at the foot of Gillespie Hill near a stream in which Rufus caught many chubs for "many good frys." (4)

After the death of his father, Ritenhouse was apprenticed at the age of eighteen to a stonemason and began his own career two years later.

A major housing development, a string of houses, was built by Rufus Rittenhouse during 1857. The Daily Times reported:

                 Rufus Rittenhouse is building a block of eight brick 
                 houses on Summit Street, near the residence of Mr. 
                 Pinto, opposite the property of E. Mattocks, and 
                 within five minutes walk of the Post Office.  They 
                 are admirably located for first class residences, 
                 having a good neighborhood, and a delightful view of 
                 the country.  Mr. R. is erecting them for the purpose 
                 of accommodating our citizens with good homesteads.  
                 They are well built, have every convenience that a 
                 family requires, and will be sold, we understand, 
                 on favorable terms.

These buildings survived as 419-21, 427-33 and 439-49 Summit. (5)

Rittenhouse built FORT RITTENHOUSE-1470 MONTROSE one of Dubuque's oldest and most distinctive homes named for its fortress-like appearance from the back on Montrose Terrace. It was his personal residence around 1846 when there were few homes north of 10th Street and none in the area of Loras Boulevard. By 1895 he had moved to a house near STEWART PARK where he focused on horticulture. As a member of the Dubuque County Horticultural Society, he read a paper in 1886 he wrote entitled "Small Fruits" mentioning that the "Parry" was an excellent strawberry and prairie hay was best for covering plants. (6)

He suffered an accident in 1895 when the horse he was riding threw him. In 1898 he was killed in a similar accident.

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Source:

1. Thayer, Bill. "Boyhood Life in Iowa Forty Years Ago, as found in the Memoirs of Rufus Rittenhouse" History of Iowa: Histories and Source Documents, Online: http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/America/United_States/Iowa/_Topics/history/

2. "Vivid Idea of Pioneer Days in Dubuque Gained in Life Story of Rufus Rittenhouse," Telegraph-Herald and Times-Journal, February 14, 1934, p. 18

3. Ibid.

4. Ibid.

5. Jacobsen, James E. "Phase V Dubuque Historical and Architectural Survey of the Fenelon Place, North Main and Broadway Neighborhoods" June 30, 2005, p. 18

6. "Horticulturalists," The Herald, December 24, 1886, p. 4