Jacob Ruppert
| Jacob Ruppert, Jr. | |
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 Ruppert at the opening of Yankee Stadium in 1923 |
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| Born | August 5, 1867 New York City |
| Died | January 13, 1939 (aged 71) New York City |
| Occupation | Owner of New York Yankees, National Guard Soldier, Representative of New York |
| Parents | Jacob Ruppert, Sr. (1842-1915), Anna Gillig-Ruppert |
| Jacob Ruppert, Jr. | |
|---|---|
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| 1902 engraving of Ruppert during his time in Congress. | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 15th and 16th district |
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| In office March 4, 1899 – March 3, 1907 |
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| Preceded by | Philip B. Low (15th) Cornelius A. Pugsley (16th) |
| Succeeded by | William H. Douglas (15th) Francis Burton Harrison (16th) |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Democratic Party |
Jacob Ruppert, Jr. (August 5, 1867 – January 13, 1939), sometimes referred to as Jake Ruppert, was an American brewer, businessman and politician. Ruppert served in the United States House of Representatives and owned the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, during which time he purchased Babe Ruth and built Yankee Stadium. Ruppert will be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in July 2013.
After starting out in the family brewing business, Ruppert entered the United States National Guard at the age of 19, eventually reaching the rank of Colonel. He was later elected to four terms in the United States House of Representatives from New York. Ruppert owned his own brewery, and in 1915 he purchased the New York Yankees, owning them for the rest of his life.
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Early life [edit]
Ruppert was born in New York City in 1867. His grandfather, a brewer from Bavaria, emigrated to the United States in 1851.[1] Jacob's father, Jacob Ruppert, Sr., also worked in the brewing industry.[2] His mother, Anna Gillig, was also of German ethnicity.[3][4] Ruppert had two sisters, Anna and Amanda.[5]
Ruppert attended the Columbia Grammar School. He was accepted into Columbia College, but instead began working in the brewing business with his father in 1887. He started as a barrel washer, working 12 hour days for $10 a week ($256 in current dollar terms).[1] He became vice president and general manager of the brewery.[2]
Ruppert enlisted in the Seventh Regiment, National Guard of New York, serving in the rank of private from 1886 through 1889. In 1890, he was promoted to Colonel and appointed to serve on the staff of David B. Hill, the Governor of New York, serving as aide-de-camp.[2] He became a senior aide on the staff of Roswell P. Flower, Hill's successor as Governor, until 1895.
Career [edit]
Ruppert was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1898 as a member of the Democratic Party to the Fifty-sixth United States Congress, defeating incumbent Philip B. Low of the Republican Party in New York's 15th congressional district. He was supported in his election by Richard Croker, the political boss of Tammany Hall.[6] Ruppert won reelection over Alderman Elias Goodman in 1900.[7][8] Ruppert was renominated for Congress, this time running in New York's 16th congressional district, in 1902.[9] Ruppert was not a candidate for reelection in 1906, and he left office in 1907.
Ruppert served as president of the Jacob Ruppert Brewing Company.[2] He was also president of the Astoria Silk Works and the United States Brewers Association from 1911 through 1914. Ruppert inherited the brewing company from his father, Jacob Ruppert, Sr. (1842–1915). His father had bought J&M Haffen Brewing Company for $700,000 in January 1914 ($16,044,186 in current dollar terms), intending to close the brewery down and develop the property.[10] In 1915, upon his father's death and just before Prohibition, he became the company's president. Ruppert also owned property, including Pass-a-Grill Key in Florida.[11]
Ruppert, interested in baseball since his childhood, began to pursue ownership of a Major League Baseball team. He had attempted to purchase the New York Giants on numerous occasions. In 1912, he was offered an opportunity to purchase the Chicago Cubs, but decided that Chicago was too far away from New York for his tastes.[2] However, Frank J. Farrell and William S. Devery, owners of the New York Yankees, were looking to sell their franchise. Ruppert and Tillinghast L'Hommedieu Huston, a former United States Army engineer and captain, purchased the Yankees from Farrell and Devery before the 1915 season for $480,000 ($10,893,158 in current dollar terms).[2]
After the 1917 season, Ban Johnson, president of the American League (AL) suggested that Ruppert hire Miller Huggins as team manager. Huston, who had been in Europe at the time that Ruppert had made the appointment, disliked Huggins and wanted to hire Wilbert Robinson, his drinking buddy.[12] However, Ruppert interviewed Huggins upon Johnson's recommendation, and agreed that Huggins knew much about baseball.[12] Ruppert offered the job to Huggins, who accepted the offer,[12] and he signed a two-year contract.[13] The hiring of Huggins drove a wedge between the two co-owners that culminated in Huston selling his shares of the team to Ruppert in 1922.[14][15]
Ruppert and Huston purchased pitcher Carl Mays from the Boston Red Sox in 1918, in direct opposition of an order issued by Johnson. The matter was taken to court, where Ruppert and Huston prevailed over Johnson. The case led to the dissolution of the National Commission, which governed baseball, and led to the creation of the Commissioner of Baseball.[2]
The Yankees purchased Babe Ruth from the Red Sox in 1919, which made the Yankees a profitable franchise.[2] The Yankees began to outdraw the Giants, with whom they shared the Polo Grounds. As a result, Charles Stoneham, owner of the Giants and the Polo Grounds, raised the rent for Ruppert and Huston for the 1922 season. The Yankee owners responded by purchasing land in The Bronx from the estate of William Waldorf Astor for $675,000 ($9,258,101 in current dollar terms),[16] breaking ground on a new stadium in May 1922. Yankee Stadium opened on April 18, 1923,[2] the first ballpark with three tiers of seating for fans,[17][18] and the first referred to as a "stadium".[16] Ruppert and Huston financed the project with $2.5 million of their own money ($34,289,264 in current dollar terms).[19]
In 1923, Ruppert bought out Huston for $1.5 million ($20,211,914 in current dollar terms), and he became the sole owner.[20][21]
Ruppert's 24 years as a Yankee owner saw him build the team from near-moribund to a baseball powerhouse. His own strength as a baseball executive — including his willingness to wheel and deal — was aided by the business skills of general manager Ed Barrow and the forceful field managing of Miller Huggins and Joe McCarthy. By the time of his death, the team was well on its way to becoming the most successful in the history of Major League Baseball, and eventually in North American professional sports.
The Yankees dominated baseball throughout a good portion of the 1920s and 1930s, including the Murderers' Row team of 1927.
Ruppert organized opposition to AL president Ban Johnson among other AL owners.[1] Ruppert and Ruth had public disagreements about Ruth's contracts.[22] Nevertheless, they were personal friends. According to Ruth, Ruppert called him Babe only once, and that was the night before he died. Ruth was one of the last persons to see Ruppert alive.
Ruppert suffered from phlebitis in April 1938 and died on January 13, 1939.[23] He was interred in Kensico Cemetery, Valhalla, New York.
Personal [edit]
Ruppert resided at Eagle's Rest estate in Garrison, New York, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Putnam County, New York. In 1894, he purchased South Brother Island, located in the East River, and was the last person to live on the island, leaving in 1909 when his house burned down.[24][25]
Legacy [edit]
Ruppert left behind an estate of $6,382,758 ($106,996,525 in current dollar terms),[26] which was managed by his heirs.[2] After mismanaging Ruppert's brewery, the heirs sold the Yankees to a group of Dan Topping, Del Webb, and Larry MacPhail in 1945. The brewery sold its flagship beer, Knickerbocker beer, to Rheingold, and went out of business in 1965.[2]
On April 16, 1940, the Yankees dedicated a plaque in Ruppert's memory, to hang on the center field wall of Yankee Stadium, near the flagpole and the monument that had been dedicated to former manager Miller Huggins.[27] The plaque called Ruppert "Gentleman, American, sportsman, through whose vision and courage this imposing edifice, destined to become the home of champions, was erected and dedicated to the American game of baseball." The plaque now rests in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium.[28]
An apocryphal story says that Ruppert is responsible for the Yankees' famous pinstriped uniforms; according to this account, Ruppert chose pinstripes in order to make the often-portly Ruth appear less obese, but the uniform was in fact introduced in 1912.[29]
A beer was named after Ruppert.[30] Ruppert Stadium in Newark, New Jersey, and Ruppert Park in Manhattan were as well.[31]
Ruppert was elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee, and will be inducted in July 2013.[32]
See also [edit]
References [edit]
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This article has an unclear citation style. (December 2012) |
- ^ a b c Gannon, Pat (January 15, 1939). "Col. Ruppert's Typical 'Burgher'; Won Battle With Ban Johnson". The Milwaukee Journal. p. 12.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Maeder, Jay (1999-03-02). "Jacob Ruppert The Old Ball Game — Page 2 - New York Daily News". Articles.nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ [1] "Jacob Ruppert, Sr. was one of the first and most noted brewers in the US. He was born in NYC and was a son of Franz and Wilhelmina Zindel-Ruppert of Bavaria"
- ^ [2] "The team had a pronounced German-American flavor from its owner beer baron Jacob Ruppert to Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, Mark Koenig, Bob Meusel, George Pipgras, Dutch Ruether and half Germans Waite Hoyt and Earle Combs"
- ^ "Gouring — Smith. - View Article — NYTimes.com". New York Times. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ The Deseret News - Google News Archive Search
- ^ "SENAT0R HANNA PLEASED — Comments on China News and the Anti-Imperialists. Attempt to Establish Connection Between Philippine Troubles and the Boxers He Calls Idiocy". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ "NEW YORK CITY — Bryan Carries It By About 28,000. BELMONT ELECTED RUPPERT WINS McClellan and Cummings Re-elected. DOUGLAS DEFEATS HILL Manhattan Gives Bryan Over 28,000 Plurality. Kings County for McKinley By Small Margin. JACOB WORTH DEFEATED IN BROOKLYN. VAN COTT-CREAMER CONTEST NEW YORK CITY". The New York Times. p. 1. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ "DEMOCRATS FOR CONGRESS — Belmonts Turned Down for Sullivan and Hearst. Goldfogle, Sulzer, McClellan, Rider, Shober, and Ruppert Named in Other Districts — Several Conventions Adjourned". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ RUPPERT BUYS HAFFEN BREWERY January 20, 1914 New York Times
- ^ The Evening Independent - Google News Archive Search
- ^ a b c Smelser, p. 194
- ^ "Miller Huggins to Pilot Yankees: Signed for Two Years to Succeed Wild Bill Donovan. Tom Connery Will Scout for Yanks. Under Huggins Cardinals Finished Third Twice in National Three Prominent Figures in Latest Major League Baseball Change". Hartford Courant. October 26, 1917. p. 14. Retrieved April 17, 2012. (subscription required)
- ^ Wheeler, Lonnie (June 3, 2003). "Huggins cornerstone to Yankees". The Cincinnati Post.
- ^ Koppett, p. 85
- ^ a b Borzi, Pat. "End of a baseball era: Yankee, Shea stadiums taking their last at-bats". MinnPost. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ Livingstone, Seth (2008-07-15). "For 85 years, history hit home in 'House That Ruth Built'". Usatoday.Com. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ "New Yankee Stadium quieter, but an instant classic — Tom Verducci — SI.com". Sportsillustrated.cnn.com. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ Sandomir, Richard (8 February 2008). "You Can’t Buy the Naming Rights, but Call It the Billion-Dollar Ballpark". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
- ^ "Yankees Timeline". Major League Baseball. Retrieved 2007-06-18. "May 21, 1922: Col. Ruppert buys out Col. Huston for $1.5 million."
- ^ Note that the Yankee website uses the number $1.25 million for the sale, while the obituary for Farrell reports $460,000. The Yankee archivist has been contacted about the discrepancy on June 18, 2007.
- ^ The Pittsburgh Press - Google News Archive Search
- ^ St. Petersburg Times - Google News Archive Search
- ^ Williams, Timothy (November 20, 2007). "City Claims Final Private Island in East River". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-05-26. "South Brother Island, seven acres of dense forest, bittersweet vines, flocks of wild birds and little else, is a speck in the East River — and a glimpse of what the rest of the city might have looked like thousands of years ago."
- ^ Williams, Timothy (20 November 2007). "City Claims Final Private Island in East River". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
- ^ "JACOB RUPPERT LEFT ESTATE OF $6,382,758 - Held 1,000 Shares, of $100,000 Par Value, in Brewery, Appraised at $4,864,504. $72,000 WORTHLESS STOCK Personal Property Included Many Valuable Horses at the Hudson River Farm". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ "Yankees Will Honor Col. Jacob Ruppert". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. April 9, 1940. p. 13. Retrieved October 28, 2011.
- ^ Sandomir, Richard (21 September 2010). "Everyone Agrees: Steinbrenner’s Plaque Is Big". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
- ^ "Yankees Timeline". Major League Baseball. Retrieved 2007-06-18. "April 11, 1912: Pinstripes first appear on Highlanders' uniforms, creating a look that would become the most famous uniform design in sports."
- ^ Spielvogel, Carl (1958-11-05). "Jacob Ruppert Is Coming Back — Article — NYTimes.com". Select.nytimes.com. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ "Ruppert Park : NYC Parks". Nycgovparks.org. Retrieved 2012-07-17.
- ^ Bloom, Barry M. "Ruppert among three elected to Hall of Fame". mlb.com. MLB Advanced Media, L.P. Retrieved 7 December 2012.
External links [edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jacob Ruppert |
- Jacob Ruppert at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Jacob Ruppert at Find a Grave
| Business positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by William S. Devery and Frank Farrell |
Owner of the New York Yankees with Tillinghast L' Hommedieu Huston 1915-1922 sole proprietor 1922-1939 |
Succeeded by Jacob Ruppert Estate |
| United States House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by Philip B. Low |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 15th congressional district 1899-1903 |
Succeeded by William H. Douglas |
| Preceded by Cornelius Amory Pugsley |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 16th congressional district 1903-1907 |
Succeeded by Francis Burton Harrison |
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This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
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