Nelson Ruttenberg (April 11, 1893 – September 12, 1959) was a Jewish-American lawyer and politician from New York.

Life

Ruttenberg was born on April 11, 1893, in

Elmira, New York Elmira () is a city and the county seat of Chemung County, New York, United States. It is the principal city of the Elmira, New York, metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses Chemung County. The population was 26,523 at the 2020 cens ...

, the son of Benjamin Ruttenberg and Sadie Kurzman. Ruttenberg attended public school in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and graduated from

DeWitt Clinton High School , motto_translation = Without Work Nothing Is Accomplished , image = DeWitt Clinton High School front entrance IMG 7441 HLG.jpg , seal_image = File:Clinton News.JPG , seal_size = 124px , ...

. In 1915, he graduated from the

New York University School of Law New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in New ...

and was admitted to the bar. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he was a sergeant in the

152nd Depot Brigade The 152d Depot Brigade was a training and receiving formation of the United States Army during World War I, and was successively commanded by Brigadier Generals George W. Read, John E. Woodward, George H. Estes, George D. Moore, Edward Sigerfo ...

Camp Upton Camp Upton was a port of embarkation of the United States Army during World War I. During World War II it was used to intern enemy aliens. It was located in Yaphank, New York in Suffolk County on Long Island, on the present-day location of Brook ...

. In 1923, he formed a partnership with his brother Norbert under the firm name Ruttenberg & Ruttenberg. In 1923, Ruttenberg was elected to the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, representing the

New York County Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

23rd District. He served in the Assembly in

1924 Events January * January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after. * January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China hol ...

. He was Fourth Deputy Police Commissioner from 1927 to 1933, during which time he presided at the disciplinary trials of policemen involved in the Seabury investigations. He resigned from the position in 1933, when he became consul to the State Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. He held that position until 1937, when he retired due to poor health. Ruttenberg was president of the

Jewish National Fund Jewish National Fund ( he, קֶרֶן קַיֶּימֶת לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Keren Kayemet LeYisrael'', previously , ''Ha Fund HaLeumi'') was founded in 1901 to buy and develop land in Ottoman Syria (later Mandatory Palestine, and subseq ...

from 1931 to 1933 an administrative committee member of the

Zionist Organization of America The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) () is an American non-profit pro-Israel organization. Founded in 1897, as the Federation of American Zionists, it was the first official Zionist organization in the United States. Early in the 20th centur ...

, Special Deputy Grand Master of the Independent Order Free Sons of Israel, and the organizer of the Young Folks' Democratic League. He was a member of the

Elks The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE; also often known as the Elks Lodge or simply The Elks) is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in New York City. History The Elks began in 1868 as a soci ...

, the

Improved Order of Red Men The Improved Order of Red Men is a fraternal organization established in North America in 1834. Their rituals and regalia are modeled after those assumed by men of the era to be used by Native Americans. Despite the name, the order was formed ...

, the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

, the

New York County Lawyers' Association The New York County Lawyers Association (NYCLA) is a bar association located in New York City. The New York County Lawyers Association was founded in 1908 because the existing bar association excluded some lawyers from membership due to their ra ...

, the

New York City Bar Association The New York City Bar Association (City Bar), founded in 1870, is a voluntary association of lawyers and law students. Since 1896, the organization, formally known as the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, has been headquartered in a ...

, the

Tammany Society Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York City political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society. It became the main loc ...

, and the Shomrim Society. He was also vice-president of the

YMHA A Jewish Community Center or a Jewish Community Centre (JCC) is a general recreational, social, and fraternal organization serving the Jewish community in a number of cities. JCCs promote Jewish culture and heritage through holiday celebrations, ...

of Washington Heights. In 1927, he married Rhea Hornung. They had a son, David A. By the time he died, he was treasurer of the

Park Avenue Synagogue The Park Avenue Synagogue ( he, אגודת ישרים, ''Agudat Yesharim'', The Association of the Righteous) is a Conservative Jewish congregation located at 50 East 87th Street on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City. Founded in 1882 ...

. Ruttenberg died from a heart attack while leaving home on September 12, 1959. He was buried in Mount Carmel Cemetery.

References

External links

*
The Political Graveyard
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruttenberg, Nelson 1893 births 1959 deaths 20th-century American Jews American lawyers Jewish American state legislators in New York (state) Jewish American military personnel Politicians from Elmira, New York DeWitt Clinton High School alumni New York University School of Law alumni 20th-century American lawyers Lawyers from New York City United States Army personnel of World War I 20th-century American legislators Politicians from Manhattan Democratic Party members of the New York State Assembly Burials in New York (state)