Longwood University

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1977 Sigma Sigma Sigma Composite

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1988 Sigma Sigma Sigma Composite

Photograph of the Putney House in Malden, W

Unknown

Longwood University Digital Commons @ Longwood University Ruffner Family History Records Ruffner Family Association Collection, LU-163 2023 Photograph of Putney House Unknown Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/ruffnerfamily_records Recommended Citation Unknown, "Photograph of Putney House" (2023). Ruffner Family History Records. 98. https://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/ruffnerfamily_records/98 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Ruffner Family Association Collection, LU-163 at Digital Commons @ Longwood University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Ruffner Family History Records by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Longwood University. For more information, please contact alwinehd@longwood.edu. 

English

Photograph of Putney House

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2019 Sigma Sigma Sigma Composite

Certificate presented in memory of George E. Ruffner for his service to the United States as part of the Armed Service

Ruffner, George

Longwood University Digital Commons @ Longwood University Ruffner Family History Records Ruffner Family Association Collection, LU-163 2023 George E. Ruffner, Certificate from George H.W. Bush George Ruffner Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/ruffnerfamily_records Recommended Citation Ruffner, George, "George E. Ruffner, Certificate from George H.W. Bush" (2023). Ruffner Family History Records. 86. https://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/ruffnerfamily_records/86 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Ruffner Family Association Collection, LU-163 at Digital Commons @ Longwood University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Ruffner Family History Records by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Longwood University. For more information, please contact alwinehd@longwood.edu. 

George E. Ruffner, Certificate from George H.W. Bush

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1975 Sigma Sigma Sigma Composite

Longwood University Digital Commons @ Longwood University Ruffner Family History Records Ruffner Family Association Collection, LU-163 2023 Photograph Hale House Unknown Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/ruffnerfamily_records Recommended Citation Unknown, "Photograph Hale House" (2023). Ruffner Family History Records. 96. https://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/ruffnerfamily_records/96 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Ruffner Family Association Collection, LU-163 at Digital Commons @ Longwood University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Ruffner Family History Records by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Longwood University. For more information, please contact alwinehd@longwood.edu. 

Photograph Hale House

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2021 Sigma Sigma Sigma Composite

History of different geographical regions in relation to the Ruffner Famil

Longwood University Digital Commons @ Longwood University Ruffner Family History Records Ruffner Family Association Collection, LU-163 2023 History of the Ruffner family by Location Unknown Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/ruffnerfamily_records Recommended Citation Unknown, "History of the Ruffner family by Location" (2023). Ruffner Family History Records. 106. https://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/ruffnerfamily_records/106 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Ruffner Family Association Collection, LU-163 at Digital Commons @ Longwood University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Ruffner Family History Records by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Longwood University. For more information, please contact alwinehd@longwood.edu. SOUTH CENTRAL KENTUCKYRuffner HistoryReuben Ruffner (son of Peter & Mary) settled near Stanford, KY after migrating with his family from Luray, VA in the late 1700s. Stanford is the county seat of Lincoln County, KY. The county, organized in 1780, was one of the first three counties formed out of the original Kentucky County, which was still part of Virginia at the time. It is named for Revolutionary War General Benjamin Lincoln.According to Dorotha Russell, the Lincoln County people were of little help and didn’t even acknowledge receiving “Reuben Ruffner and Some of His Descendants.” At this time, I do not know if we could pinpoint the location of Reuben’s farm.Isaac D. Ruffner (Peter - Emanuel - John A.) was one of the proprietors of Mill Springs Mill, located between Somerset and Monticello, KY, from 1879 through 1907. In 1973, the mill was designated a National Historic Site. The mill and its site have been completely and authentically restored by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Battle of Mill Springs was one of the first great battles of the Civil War. The site is now on the National Register of Battlefields. Mill Springs Park is open for tours from Memorial Day through Labor Day. The park also has picnic facilities.LocationSomerset, KY is about 35 miles south of Stanford. It is located between Lake Cumberland and the Daniel Boone Forest/Cumberland Falls State Park. Lake Cumberland is one of the most beautiful lakes in the country and a very popular tourist attraction. The Daniel Boone Forest and Cumberland Falls State Park (Niagara of the south) areas offer numerous recreational opportunities.LodgingDue to the popularity of this area of Kentucky and the recommendation of Peg Phillips (an RFA member), I would suggest Danville rather than Somerset for lodging/meetings. Danville is 15 miles from Stanford and 50 miles from Somerset. It has several motels, a number of charming bed & breakfasts and a large camp ground. It is also a charming historic Southern town with wonderful shops and sites.Mill Springs MillHEADING WEST -MISSOURICOLUMBIA & VICINITYColumbia, located onjnterstate 70, is the home of the University of Missouri. The local Convention Bureau will facilitate lodging/meeting accommodations and even arrange special tours for children.I recently read of two interesting small towns 35 miles west of Columbia off 1-70 - Blackwater and Arrow Rock.In Blackwater, you can relive the luxury of the glory days of the Railroad barons in a completely restored 1880s railroad hotel and restaurant - Iron Horse Hotel. The hotel has 10 guest rooms, parlor and gardens. The restaurant features fine dining. A historic schoolhouse houses a gift shop featuring antiques and new accessories.Arrow Rock was named for the flint gathered by Native Americans from a nearby bluff and salt lick. It is located at the junction of the Santa Fe Trail and the Missouri River. Arrow Rock is a town of the past and present. Original rock gutters line the main street. The Arrow Rock Tavern was built when the town was an 1830s pioneer stop. A Gothic Revival church is now the Lyceum Theatre, staging Broadway-style productions. You can visit shops filled with antiques, gifts, old time crafts and a country store with Penny candy filled bins.INDEPENDENCEOf course, everyone is familiar with Independence. Beside being the home of President Harry S. Truman, there are thirteen heritage sites. Reasonably priced combination tickets for historic sites are available. Independence has everything for a group meeting - numerous accommodation choices, historical significance, restaurants, shopping and a variety of other exciting attractions.LAKE OF THE OZARKSInfluenced by the success of the 2007 Ruffner Reunion at Estes Park, I would also suggest Lake of the Ozarks near the heart of Missouri. This is an area with numerous outdoor activities sure to be enjoyed by the “younger Ruffners” as they were at Estes Park.Lake of the Ozarks has a wide variety of lodging (resorts, hotels, bed & breakfasts and condos). They are eager to help groups plan their needs especially those of family reunions.NEBRASKAValentine, located in north-central Nebraska (near the South Dakota border), is a diverse region of lakes, sandhills, waterfalls, national wildlife refuges, big ranches with real cowboys and the ten best canoeing rivers in the U.S. It is surrounded by more than 200,000 acres of public land.Lodging is available at the Niobrara River Ranch. They have rustic log cabins with all the conveniences of home including a full kitchen. Prices are reasonable ranging from a 2 bedroom, 1 bath (sleeping 10) for $125/night to a 5 bedroom, 2 bath (sleeping 25) for $295/night. All cabins have private porches.For those combining a Ruffner Reunion and a family vacation - South Dakota’s Badlands and Mount Rushmore are not that far away.MONTANARemember Betty Gaeng’s great story about Sanford Ruffner and Bozeman, Montana? Well, Bozeman would make a great reunion destination. It not only has Ruffner history, but great museums, numerous hotels, guest ranches, campgrounds, cabins, and bed & breakfasts. Outdoor activities include hiking, biking, horseback riding, fly fishing, golfing and river running. There are many shopping locations and downtown gallery walks.For those on family vacations, Yellowstone National Park is no more than 60 miles south of Bozeman.WESTERN INDIANARuffner HistoryHenry Ruffner (Peter - Reuben) migrated with his family to Montgomery County, Indiana early in the 1800s. Henry’s family would reside in or near Crawfordsville through succeeding generations with the exception of their grandson, John D. Ruffner (a grocer), who moved with his family to Ballard, WA (near Seattle) and purchased The Ballard News, a weekly newspaper.There are at least three Ruffner homes still standing in Crawfordsville (see attached). Most of the Ruffner family, who remained in Crawfordsville, are buried in the local Sidener Cemetery in Union, IN.The story of John D. Ruffner and his sons, Albert Everett, Oscar E. and Clifford Hayes, was written by Betty Gaeng and published in a past issue of RR&R.LocationCrawfordsville, IN was laid out in 1823 and named for Colonel William H. Crawford, a cabinet officer from Virginia. He was captured by hostile Indians on the Sandusky River in 1782 and burned at the stake.Claims to FameCrawfordsville was home to Lew Wallace who wrote Ben-Hur, A Tale of the Christ. His home is a historical site.Wabash College was founded in 1832. It is one of only four all-male liberal arts colleges in the country. It has a student body of around 900.The first official basketball game in the state (Crawfordsville vs. Lafayette, March 16,1894) and the first official intercollegiate basketball game (Wabash vs. Purdue, also in 1894) occurred at the city’s YMCA.In 1882 one of the first Rotary jails in the country opened. The jail is now a museum and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.Local LoreThe Crawfordsville Monster is the name given to an unidentified flying creature that was allegedly sighted in the skies in 1891. Some resources list it as being a serpent or Dragon. Others as an Atmospheric beast.The first story of the monster was published in the Indianapolis Journal in September 1891 and later picked up by the Brooklyn Eagle.There have been only two reported sightings of the monster, both during the 19th century. The second sighting occurred on September 6,1891, when it reportedly flew over the town and was witnessed by 100 people.Descriptions vary - some say it had no head - others describing it as having glowing red eyes and hot breath.Accounts generally agree that it is a large rectangular creature, possibly eel like in appearance, with several undulating fins down the sides of its body. It was estimated to be 20 ft. long and 8 ft. wide.Witnesses at the second appearance described the creature as writhing and squirming, and as producing a wheezing sound, as if it were in pain.The monster has been adapted as a fantasy game monster under the D20-Modern gaming system, where it is classified as being an ooze- based creature that resembles an amoeba.Perhaps if we have a meeting in Crawfordsville, we can put a drawing of the Crawfordsville Monster on the souvenir “Ruffner tees.”LodgingThere doesn’t seem to be much listed in the Crawfordsville area, however Lafayette and West Lafayette are just 28 miles north. They have several motels with meeting space, quite a few bed & breakfasts and camp grounds.Lafayette has a beautiful historic downtown with over 70 shops and a river walk along the Wabash. West Lafayette is home to Purdue University.This beautiful brick home (ca. 1830) is that of Henry Ruffner [1781-1863] and his wife, Elizabeth ‘Betsy’ Sidner [1786-1847]. Henry was the grandson of Peter & Mary (Steinman) Ruffner and the eldest child of Reuben Ruffner [1748-1833], and his wife, Catherine Dager (b.unknown, d. 1830]. It is located in Crawfordsville, Indiana adjacent to the modern-day Crawfordsville High School, which was built on Ruffner farm land. The house is one of five fine brick homes owned by Ruffners within 2 and 3 miles of each other. Three of them are still standing and occupied.~  Submitted by Dorotha Russell (desc. Reuben)BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMARuffner HistoryRuffner Mountain Nature Center, one of the largest remaining forests in the Birmingham area, provides a permanent home and migratory stopover for 200 species of birds.For more than 50 years, Ruffner Mountain was a bustling iron-ore mining community. Nature has reclaimed the mountain, but remnants of its industrial history remain to be explored. Now it is 1,011 acres of green space; a unique and priceless connection to the natural world.The mountain was named for William Henry Ruffner, great-great grandson of Peter. At the age of 59, having successfully completed careers in theology and education, he went to work for the University of Virginia as a geologist. He undertook a 500 mile survey of the topography, geology, mineral, agricultural and mining resources along the route of the Georgia Pacific railroad that took him through the city of Birmingham - just 12 years after its incorporation.His work came to the attention of the railroad prompting them to move their staked-out line forty miles in order to follow the lines he had laid out. In 1887, Georgia Pacific took over the Sloss Furnace Company (now a historic site), including their Irondale mines. Shortly afterthe turn of the century, those mines were renamed for William Henry Ruffner.He continued his scientific research for over 15 years, claiming to be the first man to correctly locate the Alabama coal fields on the geologic scale.LocationRuffner Mountain is located at 1214 81st St. South on the Eastern Side of Birmingham (see attached directions and map).Birmingham was also home to Pattie Belle Ruffner Jacobs ~ Member of Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame (see attached story).LodgingThere are several hotels in Birmingham - with a wide range of rates. Tourist attractions include Vulcan Park & Museum, Alabama Adventure Theme & Water Park, Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Birmingham Museum of Art, McWane Science Center and Talladega Superspeedway.J^uffner M ountain■NATURE. CE.NTE.R DIRECTIONSPlease note: Directions on Mapquest may not be accurate.We are located on the Eastern side of Birmingham.From the North or South bound lanes of 1-59 take the 1st Aye. North Exit #132. Take a Right on 1st Ave North. A t the f irs t  tra ffic  light take a Right on 33rd Street. S tay on 33rd S treet for several blocks. Follow the road as i t  bears to  the right and becomes Rugby Avenue. Stay on Rugby for several blocks and turn LEFT on 31st S treet South. Go to  the top of the hill and you will enter our gate. Parking is up the hill and to  the right.Alternate Directions: From I-20 West bound take the Montevallo Road Exit #132. A t tra ffic  light go stra ight over hill. Turn right a t stop sign onto Oporto-Madrid Blvd. You will pass Lawson Field on your right. Go over bridge. Take a right on Rugby Ave. Follow Rugby for several blocks and turn right on 31st S treet South. Go to  top of hill and youThe Battling Belle of BirminghamPattie Belle Ruffner Jacobs [1875-1935]Peter ~ Joseph ~ David ~ Lewis ~ Lewis, Jr.PATTIE BELLE RUFFNER grew up with the manners, charm and looks o f a Southern Belle. Blessed with a lovely singing voice, she appeared in operettas and sang in choirs. But, this “Belle” was destined for more than a life o f Southern gentility and culture. HER LIFE would be dedicated to EQUALITY AND JUSTICE.She was bom  on Saturday, 2 Oct 1875 in Malden,Kanawha, W est Virginia. Her father, Lewis Ruffner, Jr., met and married her mother, Virginia Louisa West, in St.Louis, Missouri. Lewis returned to Malden in 1873, with his growing family, to become one o f the trustees o f his father’s salt business.Pattie married Solon Harold Jacobs [1866-1947] prior to 1900. They settled in Birmingham, Alabama and had two daughters: Madelon Ruffner Jacobs, b. 1902, and Virginia W est Jacobs, b. 1908.Early in her marriage, Pattie watched children, some as young as eight, marching to work in the mines on Birmingham’s Red Mountain. They were paid a dollar a day ~ the standard for child workers. She vowed when women got the vote, they would put a stop to child labor and right some o f the other wrongs in Alabama and the nation.Thus as a young housewife, with small children, Pattie became the first political role model for women in the state o f Alabama. Her husband, Solon Jacobs, understood her concerns and supported her efforts. She founded the Birmingham Equal Suffrage Association in 1910, and the Alabama Equal Suffrage Association a year later. She stated, “Women were tired o f being compared to lilies, roses, and the moon. They want to be thought o f as people, people who could vote. Lilies and roses were confined to the narrow garden, but women wanted wide lives.”Pattie became an officer in the National Equal Suffrage Association. Believing that democracy did not exist as long as women were denied the vote, she argued eloquently and worked diligently from 1910 to 1920 to secure THAT RIGHT for the women o f Alabama.In 1915, the only states with equal suffrage for women were Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Washington, California, Oregon, Kansas, Arizona, Nevada, M ontana and the territory of Alaska. On August 26,1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, prohibiting all states from denying the right to vote based on sex, was ratified. Nevertheless, Alabama and many other states maintained voting requirements, such as the poll tax and literacy tests, which prevented women and minorities from voting until long after 1920. Alabama finally ratified the 19th Amendment in 1954,34 years after it had taken effect. In 1964, the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was passed, prohibiting states from denying the right to vote based on failure to pay poll taxes or any other tax.However, it would be 1966, before Alabama allowed women to serve on juries.After ratification of the 19th Amendment, Pattie helped turn the Alabama Suffrage Association into the League of Women Voters. She became an officer of the League and in 1920, the national secretary. In the twenties, she led the local league in an unsuccessful campaign to pass a bill creating the eight hour day.She was appointed the first National Democratic Committeewoman from Alabama with a seat on the national committee from 1933 until her death. She was appointed to several commissions by Presidents Hoover and Roosevelt, including the first woman appointee to aid in the sale of Liberty Bonds during the first World War, Head of the Woman’s Division of the Consumer Advisory Board of the National Recovery Administration and Publicity Speaker for the Tennessee Valley Authority.PATTIE RUFFNER JACOBS sought to correct the inequities in society ~ child labor, convict lease, and uncontrolled hours for working people. When she won the right to vote ^.she strived to end those disparities. Unfortunately, she did not live to see the fruition of all her labors.After Pattie’s death, Hallie Farmer, a history and political science professor at Alabama College for Women, took up the cause in Alabama. She worked tirelessly through the 1940s and early 1950s for prison reform, repeal of the poll tax, establishment of a merit system and re-writing of Alabama’s Constitution of 1901. Hallie lived until 1960 ~ long enough to see the realization of Pattie’s dreams.Pattie Ruffner Jacobs was one of the first women inducted into the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame. In 2000, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Women’s Equality Day, Women Great o f Heart, an original play written by and starring Bette Y eager, premiered at the University of Alabama, Huntsville’s Chan auditorium on August 26. The play celebrates the lives of Pattie Ruffner Jacobs and Hallie Farmer.The Yellow Ribbon Words by Marie Le BaronOh, we wear a yellow ribbon upon our woman’s breast,We are prouder o f its sunny hue than o f a royal crest;‘Twas God’s own primal color, born o f purity and light,We wear it now for liberty, for justice and for right.‘Tis just a hundred years ago our mothers and our sires Lit up for all the world to see, the flame offreedom’s fires;Through bloodshed and through hardship they labored in the fight;Today we women labor still for Liberty and Right.(Updated verse and chorus by F. Wolff, 1997):We have been through wars and poverty, pollution and the bomb;Our nation needs our women to be dutiful and calm;We remember our foremothers, Carrie Catt and Susan B.,As we cast our votes for tolerance, for peace and liberty.We still wear that yellow ribbon upon our woman’s breast,We are prouder o f its sunny hue than o f its royal crest;‘Twas God’s own primal color, born o f purity and light,We wear it now for justice, equal pay, and equal rights.Story compiled by Joan (Ruffner) Reid

History of the Ruffner Family by Location

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