This record group, although named for the salt company owned and operated by Charles F. Ruggles and John Henry Rademaker from 1920 to its sale in 1931, is also an accumulation of records of the business enterprises and land dealings of Charles Ruggles beginning in 1866 and of the partnership operations of Ruggles and Edward Buckley. Included are business correspondence, financial records, organizational materials, and litigation files. Many of the financial records have been microfilmed.
Charles F. Ruggles was born at Naples, Maine on March 3, 1846. He moved to Wisconsin some time in the 1850s, eventually going into the timber estimating business with his father. Around 1866, he established himself as a lumberman with his headquarters in Manistee, Michigan. Over the years, he acquired timber land in Michigan, Minnesota, California, and the Carolinas.
In 1880, Ruggles as a silent partner was instrumental in guiding the negotiations which led to the partnership between Edward Buckley and William Douglas for purposes of establishing a logging and lumber manufacturing business. In 1886, this firm acquired the Ruddock & Nuttall mill property. The Buckley and Douglas Lumber Company was formally incorporated in 1892.
The following years were marked by litigation between Ruggles and Buckley. In 1906 was awarded one million dollars from Buckley. In 1926, Buckley was awarded one hundred thousand dollars from Ruggles.
In 1920, Ruggles purchased the Buckley & Douglas lumber company in Manistee, and then in partnership with John Henry Rademaker, built and developed what was recognized as the largest salt plant in the world. The two partners would have a falling out, leading to the case of Rademaker v. Ruggles. The plant was sold in 1931 to the Morton Salt Company.
Ruggles died August 21, 1930.
