Our Story
The History of the L. A. Ritter House
Ludwig A. Ritter was a pioneer businessman in central Minnesota. In 1883, at the age of 24, he formed a partnership as a hardware and implement merchant on Main Street in Hutchinson, where he continued in business for almost 50 years. Mr. Ritter also owned a foundry, a tin ceiling factory, and was Vice President of the Bank. He was very involved in the community, serving as Mayor of Hutchinson, member of the city council, member of the Hospital Board of Directors, Treasurer of the school board, and President of the McLeod County Agricultural Association. His obituary in the January 3, 1932 issue of The Hutchinson Leader noted that L. A. Ritter “had held at one time or another nearly every position of trust in the community. He was a useful citizen, a faithful friend, and honored by all who knew him.”
An article in the August 18, 1898 issue of The Hutchinson Independent noted, “L. A. Ritter yesterday purchased a block of city property… This is a valuable piece a property and has only recently been thrown on the market.” In 1899, he hired William Davidson (who owned the large house next door) to build a beautiful home in the popular Victorian style for he and his new bride, Mary “Matie” Louisa Hartmann. Lud and Matie never had children, and sold their large home in 1913 to move to a smaller brick bungalow style home on Grove Street.
The second family to purchase the house lived there for over 30 years. The third owners added rooms onto the rear to serve as a boarding house. In the late 1940’s, it was converted to a duplex. In 1989, an enterprising woman purchased and lovingly restored it to its former Victorian glory, and operated the Harrington House Bed and Breakfast and a restaurant there for five years. The next owners did extensive work to the exterior, adding cobblestone paths, beautiful perennial gardens and a gazebo, then re-opened it as the L. A. Ritter House Bed and Breakfast. We purchased the home in 2008, with the dream of opening a Tea Room and special event venue, to share this beautifully completed property with the community.
The Story of Heirlooms
I still have my miniature china tea set from when I was a little girl. Some pieces are missing and many are chipped, but the memories they hold make them precious to me. As a child, I loved having tea parties, usually with my little sister. I was blessed with a grandmother who nurtured the feminine qualities that she saw in me. When I grew up and became a wife and then a mother, I had tea parties with my children to nurture our relationships and instill good manners in them. “Tuesday Tea with Mommy” inspired my daughter to host tea parties for her friends and teachers. I’ve had the pleasure of sharing the art of afternoon tea with my new daughter-in-law, and now she enjoys helping me at Heirlooms. Over the years I’ve hosted countless tea parties, from serving 2 people in my home to 200 people at a Mother/Daughter Tea in our church home. Though I didn’t realize it at the time, the “Heirlooms” theme for that event planted the seeds for my future.
As my husband and I entered our “empty nest” phase, I began to reevaluate the things that were important to me, with a desire to lead a more authentic life. While pondering what that meant, I reminisced about what interests had been consistent since my childhood, and what I wanted to pass on to future generations. I realized that I have always loved beautiful, feminine things - delicate china, soft vintage linens, antique furniture, classic novels, romantic clothing. I’m intrigued by the Victorian era, when a higher level of civility, beauty and graciousness were the standard. I longed for men to learn to be gentlemen, and for women to rediscover the essence of femininity. I desired meaningful relationships, and to see families create a Godly heritage for future generations.
At a prayer retreat in 2005, during a session titled “Discovering God’s Dreams for Your Life”, the Pastor encouraged us to ponder this question: “If every job paid the same, what would you do with your life?” The vision that God gave me is recorded in my notebook like this:
“Creating beauty and serenity for women and girls – a haven from the busyness of our modern world - a place to learn what is to be a lady.”
Over the next few years, the seeds that had been planted throughout my life began to grow into the vision for a Tea Room located in a historic home, an unhurried place for social gatherings that would feed the soul as well as the body, where people could experience hospitality, beauty, and peace. I envisioned hosting etiquette and historical events, Victorian Girls Day Camps, and teaching etiquette lessons to enrich youth with a greater respect for themselves and others. I pictured a Domestic Arts center to invite local citizens to teach lessons in “traditional home arts” that are soon to be lost in our modern technology driven society. My desire is to involve local Senior Citizens to share their skills of knitting, crochet, embroidery, hand sewing, etc. to the younger generations. This would complete the vision for Heirlooms – passing on the gifts of time and talents to be treasured for generations to come.
“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy
—think about these things.”
- Philippians 4:8