Samuel Bulkley Ruggles

Samuel Bulkley Ruggles (11 April, 1800 – 28 August, 1881) was an American lawyer and public figure. Born in New Milford, Connecticut, he graduated from Yale in 1814, and was admitted to the bar in 1821. He was a successful lawyer in New York City for several years, but eventually gave up the practice of law to dedicate himself to public affairs. In 1838 he was elected a member of the assembly.

In New York City, he was a driving force behind the establishment of Gramercy Park which was dedicated in 1831, to which he personally donated the land, and also influenced the design of Union Square, where he lived. In the 1860s he was a United States delegate to several European assemblies, like the International Statistics Congress in Berlin in 1863, and the Paris Exposition of 1867. His most enduring legacy though, was his work as a canal commissioner to enlarge the Erie Canal, and build the Erie Railroad.

In 1854, he published a pamphlet "The Duty of Columbia College to the Community" which was a kickoff for the drama surrounding Dr. Oliver Wolcott Gibbs' denied academic appointment at Columbia University due to his Unitarian religion. [Cf. Bender, p. 271 etc.]

Ruggles died on Fire Island, New York, in 1881. His cousin was the U.S. Representative Charles H. Ruggles.

References

* Bender, Thomas, "New York Intellect: A History of Intellectual Life in New York City, from 1750 to the Beginnings of Our Own Time", Knopf, 1987. ISBN 0394550269
* [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9A06EFD71739E133A25750C0A9619C946095D6CF "Gramercy Park"] , The New York Times, Editorial, Sunday, July 3, 1921, p.22. On Gramercy Park's 90th anniversary and some history.
* [http://www.oldandsold.com/articles14/new-york-74.shtml "Samuel B. Ruggles, Founder Of Gramercy Park"] , Antiques Digest, reprinted. Originally published 1921.

External links

* [http://www.virtualology.com/samuelbulkleyruggles/ Samuel Bulkley Ruggles on Virtual American Biographies]
*worldcat id|id=lccn-n88-85881