Friedrich Emil Ruth

Fred was the oldest surviving son of F. Gustav Ruth and Johanna (Elwers)  Ruth.  After Gustav’s death, he was the executor of the estate.  His step-mother, Bertha (Rosnow) Ruth, lived for over 22 years after her husband’s death and she grew quite senile during that time.  After his father’s death, Fred made some unfortunate choices in the management of the estate funds.  Long before Bertha died, the estate was in financial trouble.  They had to sell all of the properties piecemeal and put a mortgage on the family home as Mother Ruth was still living there.  In the end, this was also truly a financial disaster for the two unmarried sisters, Mayme and Alma Ruth, who were forced to live out the rest of their lives in poverty after having been raised in wealthy circumstances.  As Aud lived in Chicago and Esther and her husband, Carl Krieser, lived in nearby Kimberly, Wisconsin, they were left to deal with the legal struggles that followed from the mishandling of the funds.  Aud wrote Esther suggesting that they hire a lawyer and that he make a list of where all the funds went so they would know exactly what happened.  This started a sad court battle that followed. 

Aud’s letter was dated February 10, 1934, long before Mother Ruth died.  Carl was never one to back down from what he considered to be a wrong, so he picked up the fight.  In the end, he was ready to have Fred thrown in jail for his dubious use of estate funds, but in true Ruth unity, none of the girls would have that, even though there was no inheritance.  To them, family love and unity was more important than money.  Carl grudgingly acquiesced to their wishes and family peace was restored.  This situation would probably have caused a permanent rift in most families but because of the deep love that the Ruth siblings had for one another, they weathered it.  Even in the 1950s, Esther’s family visited Fred’s family in his home and Carl held his peace.  The whole family got together for occasional reunions where they all enjoyed each other’s company.  Alma and Mayme, the two single sisters, found an apartment for $25 a month and due to the goodness of their landlord’s heart, they had an affordable place to live.