Finding aid for the Ratner Family Photographs


Repository: Western Reserve Historical Society
Creator: Ratner Family
Title: Ratner Family Photographs
Dates: 1965-1996
Extent: 0.41 linear feet (1 container and 1 oversize folder)
Abstract: The Ratner (formerly Ratowczer) family has been prominent in the Cleveland, Ohio, area since the mid-twentieth century. The family immigrated to the United States in 1920 and settled in Cleveland in 1921, eventually founding what became known as Forest City Enterprises, Inc. Leonard Ratner married Lillian Bernstein in 1924 and had two children: Ruth Ratner Miller and Albert B. Ratner. Leonard Ratner held many important positions on community boards during his lifetime, including the positions of honorary life trustee at the Jewish Welfare Federation, the Jewish Community Federation, and Mount Sinai Hospital. His daughter Ruth was a civic leader, businesswoman, and philanthropist. She and Samuel Miller had four children. Albert B. Ratner married Faye Katz in 1950 and had two children. The collection consists of 39 black and white photographs and 238 color photographs of varying sizes.
PG Number PG 548
Location: closed stacks
Language: The records are in English

Biography of the Ratner Family

The Ratner Family has been a prominent family in the Cleveland, Ohio, area since the mid-twentieth century. Leonard Ratner (1896-1974), businessman, Jewish community leader, and philanthropist, was born Leiser Ratowczer in Bialystok, Poland, to Moishe Ratowczer and Pesha (Koppelman) Ratowczer. In Bialystok, Leonard received a Jewish education and began working in the weaving trade. In 1920 he immigrated to the United States, settling in Cleveland in 1921. He first worked as a weaver before opening two creameries in the Glenville neighborhood with his sister Dora and brother Max. Leonard's brother Charlie had formed Forest City Material Co. in 1921. Leonard went on to form Buckeye Material Co. in 1924. The creameries were sold in 1926, and family members concentrated their work on their lumber and supply businesses. Forest City Material Co. and Buckeye Material Co. merged and became B & F Building Co. in 1929; the company constructed three-bedroom homes in the east side suburbs. By 1942, the family business was building 1500 prefabricated homes a year.

By 1960, the family's retail stores and business interests consolidated into Forest City Enterprises, Inc. Forest City Enterprises then experienced its greatest growth in real estate as it built, owned, and managed shopping malls, offices and industrial buildings, hotels, and apartment complexes across the nation. Eventually, Forest City Enterprises became involved in large urban development projects such as Tower City Center in Cleveland, which opened in 1990. By 1993, Forest City Enterprises had come to own over $2 billion in real estate.

Leonard Ratner married Lillian Bernstein in 1924 and had two children, Ruth Ratner Miller and Albert B. Ratner. Ruth Ratner Miller (1926-1996) was a civic leader, businesswoman, and philanthropist; she married Samuel Miller in 1946 bringing him into the family business. They had four children: Aaron David, Richard, Gabrielle, and Abraham. Aaron David Miller is a prominent Middle East analyst, author, and negotiator. The couple divorced in 1982. Albert B. Ratner (b. 1927) married Faye Katz (1931-1978) in 1950 and had two children, Deborah Ratner (b. 1959) and Brian Ratner (b. 1957). Faye was killed in an automobile accident in 1978. Albert later married Audrey Gilbert Pritzker (1928) in 1981.

Leonard Ratner was an influential businessman, community leader, and philanthropist. He began volunteer work with the Jewish Welfare Federation in 1931 and was elected honorary life trustee in 1966. Ratner held many important positions on community boards throughout his lifetime. He was honorary trustee for life at Mount Sinai Hospital, trustee for life of the Jewish Community Federation of Cleveland, and a member of the Board of Overseers of the Jewish Theological Seminary. Ratner was also involved in helping build Park Synagogue in Cleveland Heights, serving as its president from 1952 to1955. His daughter Ruth Ratner Miller graduated from Case Western Reserve University with a degree in elementary education and went on to earn a Ph.D. in guidance and counseling. She was involved in both the Community Development and Health Departments of the City of Cleveland, serving as their director. She was also active in the Tower City Center project, The Park Synagogue, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. Albert B. Ratner is a graduate of Michigan State University with a degree in forestry and is an adjunct visiting professor for the Michigan State University Land Policy Institute. Well known for his involvement in Cleveland and as a leader in the Jewish community, Albert B. Ratner is a life trustee of the Cleveland Jewish Community Federation and a member of the International Council of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. He is involved nationally with the Henry M. Jackson Foundation as well as the Board of Trustees for the United Jewish Communities. In addition, the Ratner family was instrumental in establishing the Cleveland Jewish Archives at the Western Reserve Historical Society in 1976.


Scope and Content

The Ratner Family Photographs, 1965-1996 and undated, consist of 39 black and white photographs and 238 color photographs of varying sizes.

This collection is of value to researchers studying the history of Cleveland, Ohio, the Ratner family, Samuel Miller, and Forest City Enterprises. Most of the images in the collection are of Leonard Ratner or Albert Ratner and those with whom they worked in their philanthropic endeavors. Those interested in the history of Jewish immigration and immigrant entrepreneurs, the urban development of Cleveland, or the history of philanthropy will also find the collection of value.


Statement of Arrangement

The collection is arranged into three series. Each series is organized alphabetically by subject and then chronologically.
Series I: Individual Portraits
Series II: Group Portraits
Series III: Views

Restrictions on Access

None.

Related Material

The researcher should also consult MS 5044 Ratner Family Papers.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Architects and builders -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Photographs.
Jewish businesspeople -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Photographs.
Jewish families -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Photographs.
Jews -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Photographs.
Miller, Ruth Ratner, 1926-1996 -- Photograph collections.
Philanthropists -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Photographs.
Ratner family. -- Photographs.
Ratner, Albert B., 1927- -- Photograph collections.
Ratner, Leonard, 1896-1974 -- Photograph collections.
Real estate developers -- Ohio -- Cleveland -- Photographs.

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] PG 548 Ratner Family Photographs, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

These photographs were removed from MS 5044 Ratner Family Papers. Gifts of Albert Ratner in 1996 and 1997; and Judith Sherman in 2006 and 2007.

Processing Information

Processed by Audrey Hudak, Paul Niebrzydowski, and Sean Martin in 2010.

Detailed Description of The Collection

Series I: Individual Portraits 1965-1969 undated

Box Folder
1 1 Jackson, Henry undated
1 2 Miller, Sam 1965 undated
1 3 Ratner, Albert (oversize material removed to Oversize Folder 1) undated
1 4 Ratner, Anne 1968-1969
1 5 Ratner, Audrey undated
1 6 Ratner, James undated
1 7 Ratner, Leonard (oversize material removed to Oversize Folder 1) undated
1 8 Ratner, Tawny Roland (wife of Brian) undated

Series II: Group Portraits 1972-1996 undated

Box Folder
1 9 AIPAC fundraiser 1994
1 10 Alsam Corporation baseball team undated
1 11 Miller, Sam and Dorothy Fuldheim and Rabbi Rudolph Rosenthal undated
1 12 Ratner, Albert and Rosalyn Carter and Ambassador Milton Wolf (oversize material removed to Oversize Folder 1) undated
1 13 Ratner, Albert and Frank Church undated
1 14 Ratner, Albert and H. Epstein undated
1 15 Ratner, Albert and Vic Gelb undated
1 16 Ratner, Albert and Jack Goldberg undated
1 17 Ratner, Albert and Jack Goldberg, Homebuilders Award undated
1 18 Ratner, Albert and Stanley Horowitz undated
1 19 Ratner, Albert and Henry Kissinger undated
1 20 Ratner, Albert and Sam Miller undated
1 21 Ratner, Albert and Audrey Ratner and Chicago, Illinois, Mayor Richard Daley undated
1 22 Ratner, Albert and Audrey Ratner and Alexander Haig undated
1 23 Ratner, Albert and Audrey Ratner and Sam Miller, Miller Ball June 15, 1996
1 24 Ratner, Albert and Audrey Ratner and George and Janet Voinovich undated
1 25 Ratner, Albert and Judy and Morry Weiss with Elie Wiesel undated
1 26 Ratner, Albert and Leonard Ratner and unidentified others undated
1 27 Ratner, Albert and Lou Stokes (oversize material removed to Oversize Folder 1) undated
1 28 Ratner, Albert and George Voinovich (oversize material removed to Oversize Folder 1) undated
1 29 Ratner, Faye Katz and Richard Buchholzer undated
1 30 Ratner, Harry, Army and Navy 'E' undated
1 31 Ratner, Leonard, Israeli relatives of 1968
1 32 Ratner, Leonard and Henry Jackson undated
1 33 Ratner, Leonard and Senator Edward M. Kennedy and George M. Steinbrenner III 1972
1 34 Ratner, Leonard and Golda Meir undated
1 35 Ratner, Leonard and Albert Ratner undated
1 36 Ratner, Leonard and Albert Ratner and Faye Katz Ratner undated
1 37 Ratner, Leonard and Albert Ratner, and unidentified others undated
1 38 Ratner, Tawny (wife of Brian) with Emily Faye Ratner undated
1 39 Shafran, Nate and Emily Faye Ratner undated

Series III: Views 1992 undated

Box Folder
1 40 Gravestones, individual views of, in New York and Montreal undated
1 41 Public Square, Christmas scene at night (oversize material removed to Oversize Folder 1) undated
1 42 The Ratner House undated
1 43 Stouffer Tower City Plaza Hotel, including English Oak Room, Royal Oak Room, and Choo Choo Lounge undated
1 44 Taiwan 1992