Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation, 1218 Oak Street, New Albany, IN (2026)

10/14/2026

Cardinal Ritter Wednesday – October 14, 2026

SEVEN ARCHBISHOPS VISIT RITTER BIRTHPLACE
Since the founding of the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation, Inc. (CRBFI) in early 2004, seven archbishops have visited and/or served on our Board of Directors.

1 – October 28, 2008 – ARCHBISHOP DANIEL M. BUECHLEIN of Indianapolis visited the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace, still under construction. He was accompanied by Francis and Margaret Lori, parents of New Albany native Bishop William E. Lori of Bridgeport, CT (now Archbishop of Baltimore),

2 - Feb. 2004 & July 2013 – ARCHBISHOP WILLIAM E. LORI of Baltimore, MD, was founding honorary chaplain of our board of directors beginning in 2004. In July 2013, he returned to dedicate the Ritter Museum Room.

3 - 1998-2008 & April 29, 2011 – ARCHBISHOP PAUL D. ETIENNE of Seattle, WA. While serving a 10-year pastorate at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in New Albany he also served on our board of directors. He returned in 2011 to dedicate the Cardinal Ritter Center.

4 – April 7, 2013 – ARCHBISHOP JOSEPH W. TOBIN of Indianapolis, IN, (now Cardinal Archbishop of Newark, NJ) visited the Birthplace while in southern Indiana for several Confirmations.

5 – March 13, 2014 – ARCHBISHOP JOSEPH E. KURTZ of Louisville, KY, was guest speaker at our 2nd Annual Irish Coffee and Lecture Series Event.

6 – March 14, 2019 – ARCHBISHOP CHARLES C. THOMPSON of Indianapolis, IN, was guest speaker at our 7th Annual Irish Coffee and Lecture Series Event.

7 – May 25, 2023 – ARCHBISHOP SHELTON FABRE of Louisville, KY, was invited to visit the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace. He “blessed” the restored Ritter Birth Room and participated in a lengthy conversation with board members.
Please help us spread the good news of Cardinal Ritter’s life and legacy.

SEND THIS NEWS TO YOUR FRIENDS!
THANK YOU! Ray Day, CRBFI Archivist www.cardinalritterhouse.org

09/30/2026

CARDINAL RITTER WEDNESDAY – September 30, 2026

NEW ALBANY DEANERY GRADE SCHOOL STUDENTS TOUR BIRTHPLACE

On September 24, 2026, seventy 7th graders from two New Albany Deanery schools enjoyed a mid-morning visit to the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace. Before their arrival, Father Steve introduced them to the Cardinal's legacy at the nearby Knights of Columbus.

While one member of the CRB Foundation, Inc. board of directors gave a most impressive overview of the parlor, birth room and exterior while, another in the Cardinal's attire personalized the experience and held their attention with an inspired delivery. The students were enthralled!

The K of C “Cardinal Ritter Council 1221” annually sponsors “Cardial Ritter Day” at their Main Street location, just seven blocks from the CR Birthplace. Students enjoy various activities related to the Cardinal and his legacy. Lessons learned by these young “tourists” will be remembered for years to come.

Please help us spread the good news of Cardinal Ritter’s life and legacy.

SHARE THIS POST WITH YOUR FACEBOOK FRIENDS!
THANK YOU! Ray Day, CRBFI Archivist www.cardinalritterhouse.org

09/17/2026

SEJ NEIGHBORHOOD FESTIVAL
The S. Ellen Jones Neighborhood Festival on Saturday was held September 12. This annual event in conjunction with St. John Presbyterian Church is our annual gift to our neighbors in Midtown New Albany, Indiana. Along 13th Street and at Ritter Park across Oak Street, a feast of free fun was enjoyed by kids and parents alike. Activities included free games, hot dogs, haircuts, music, petting zoo, pizzas, bouncy house, 911 remembrance, color guard, snow-cones, and much more.
Although weather was threatening in the morning, sunshine and pleasant temperatures followed. The individuals (pictured) in the red T-shirts (WORK HARD, PRAY HARD, DON’T WORRY) made it all happen for the 18th year.
This is but one way the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation, Inc. continues Cardinal Ritter’s community outreach legacy well into the 21st century. Our thanks to Pastor Allen Colwell and the parishioners and GILDA’S FLOYD (our primary tenant) for their participation. A special thanks goes to the cosmetology students from Prosser Career Education Center who provided free haircuts to both children and adults.
Thanks for following us. SHARE to help us expand our outreach. www.cardinalritterhouse.org. Your comments are always welcome.
Ray Day, CRBFI Archivist – 9-16-2026

09/09/2026

Cardinal Ritter Wednesday – September 9, 2026

CARDINAL RITTER BIRTHPLACE is all spruced up for Autumn.

Eight board members and a “spouse” spent two Saturday mornings freshening up the landscape for the change of seasons. It was completed just in time for our 18th ANNUAL S. ELLEN JONES NEIGHBORHOOD STREET FESTIVAL this Saturday, September 12. The festival is a gift to New Albany’s Midtown area from the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation, Incorporated.

Want more information about the CRBFI? Go to www.cardinalritterhouse.org
You are most welcome to SHARE this post with your Facebook friends. Since we are trying to spread our Social Media Wings, we would appreciate that very much.

Thank you. R.Day, Archivist

09/02/2026

CARDINAL RITTER BIRTHPLACE HISTORICAL MARKER UNVEILED

It was a bright sunny Sunday afternoon, July 22, 2007, when the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace was recognized and honored by a Historical Marker. The event brought dignitaries from both Indianapolis and St. Louis. Guests included (left to right in attached photo) Saint Louis Archdiocese Auxiliary Bishop Robert J. Hermann, Mary “Virginia” Ritter Lipps (niece of Cardinal Ritter), Monsignor Nicholas A. Schneider (Ritter biographer), and Monsignor Joseph F. Schaedel (vicar general of Indianapolis) representing Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein.

The event commemorated the 115th birthday of Cardinal Ritter (b. July 20, 1892).

Dedication of the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Historical Marker planted the seeds of the “S. Ellen Jones Neighborhood Street Festival” (held annually, ever since, on the second Saturday in September). Residents of the entire mid-town neighborhood were invited to the dedication treated to a free lunch as well.

Visit http://www.cardinalritterhouse.org/historical-marker/ to see more photos, view both sides of the marker, and read THE CRITERION’s feature story of the event,

And now? Help us spread the good news of Cardinal Ritter’s life and legacy.

SHARE THIS POST WITH YOUR FACEBOOK FRIENDS!

Then, ask them to send us a ‘friend request.”

THANK YOU! Ray Day, CRBFI Archivist

08/26/2026

FROM LATIN TO ENGLISH
Sixty-two years ago this week, on August 24, 1964, Cardinal Joseph Ritter made history. He orchestrated the first four celebrations of Holy Mass in America’s vernacular language, English.

The first draft of the English version of the liturgy of the Mass was celebrated on four consecutive days, by four different clerics at the Annual Liturgical Week Conference at the Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis. Ritter celebrated his first “in English” Mass on the second day of the conference. Time Magazine reported “the verdict of most liturgists was – ‘Needs work.’”

The New York Times reported “More than 11,000 bishops, priest, nuns and laymen, supplemented by a hundred invited Protestant observers, heard the historic celebration in the horseshoe-shaped arena. The event opened the 25th annual Liturgical Week here [St. Louis].”

Latin had been the language of the Roman Catholic Mass since the fourth century. That officially changed throughout America on November 29, 1964, the first Sunday of Advent. Cardinal Ritter’s role in the Second Vatican Council established his leadership of the transition from Latin to English.

Clickhttp://www.cardinalritterhouse.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/4-A.R.M.-From-Latin-to-English.pdf for the full story and an explanation of the accompanying Associated Press photo.

Please SHARE this week’s “CR Wednesday” feature with your Facebook friends if you found it interesting!!!

08/19/2026

A most unexpected vestment given to the Ritter Museum by the Archdiocese of St. Louis is this White Ermine Fur Mozzetta. This stunning “cape” is in amazingly good condition. When worn over his scarlet robes, the contrasting luxurious fur boldly accented Ritter’s newly acquired rank of Cardinal on January 16, 1961.

Upon return from the Papal Consistory, Cardinal Ritter wore his Ermine Mozzetta for this photo that appeared in a special edition of the St. Louis Review on February 3, 1961.

Our Ritter Collection also includes this oil portrait, likely painted in 1961 by a highly skilled artist who remains a mystery as the signature is illegible. After decades in the hands of the Ritter family, it was entrusted to the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation, Inc. in 2010, when restoration was completed. Again, the Ermine Mozzetta dramatically commands the viewer’s attention.

Planning continues for expansion of the Ritter Museum. Here’s how you can help!
1 - SHARE this post with your Facebook friends.
2 - VISIT www.cardinalritterhouse.org for much more information about Cardinal Ritter.
3 - Now, click DONATE TODAY box on our website homepage.

08/12/2026

AN AUGUST MEMORY!
RITTER PARK DEDICATION – AUGUST 15, 2009
The Nicholas and Bertha Ritter family lived at 1218 E. Oak Street in New Albany, IN. It was a teeming neighborhood with “shot gun” house on long narrow lots, corner groceries, taverns, and the Ritter Bakery. Cardinal Ritter was born there in 1892.

Many years later, but prior to 2000, the city of New Albany cleared 17 old residences from a three-acre site across Oak Street from the former Ritter Birthplace. Bounded by Oak Street, 13th Street, Culbertson Avenue, and S. Ellen Jones School, a $1.5 million project created a community green space.
Phase II of the project, which cost about $304,000, included the addition of a playground and canopies. According to a story in The New Albany Tribune dated February 12, 2002, on the night of February 9, 2002, a fire set by vandals severely damaged the playground. Damage was estimated at $40,000.
Seven years later, on August 15, 2009, the three-acre green space was designated RITTER PARK. On July 24, 2014, a RITTER PARK sign was unveiled by David Hock, Chairperson of the Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation, Inc., and Virginia Ritter Lipps, a niece of Cardinal Ritter.
(Photo, courtesy News & Tribune)

In spring of 2024, the Parks and Recreation Department erected a new sign reflecting the graphic design theme used at other community park locations.

07/29/2026

Cardinal Ritter Wednesday for July 29, 2026, features images of Cardinal Ritter with Pope Paul VI at the Vatican. He is wearing a Black Cassock and Fascia, both now part of our Ritter Collection.

07/22/2026

This week we celebrate the birth of Elmer Joseph Ritter, born on July 20, 1892. He died on June 10, 1967, just 11 days following his 50th Anniversary of his 1917 ordination to the priesthood.

Today’s artifact from the Ritter Museum Collection of Vestments and Artifacts is a Golden Anniversary Candle dated May 30, 1967.

If you enjoy this content, support the Cardinal Ritter Museum Expansion by donating at https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/cardinal-ritter-birthplace-museum-expansion

Cardinal Ritter Birthplace Foundation

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