Rasmey County History – Fall 1997: “Speakers, Style Shows, and 12,000 Shoppers: The Women’s Institute and How It Revived Downtown St. Paul”

Speakers, Style Shows, and 12,000 Shoppers: The Women’s Institute and How It Revived Downtown St. Paul

Author: Kathleen C. Ridder

“The mission of the Women’s Institute, created in 1939 . . . was to generate retail business in St. Paul by actively encouraging women to shop in the city.” And so it did. The initial force behind the Institute was Pioneer Press newspaper publisher Bernard Ritter, but women ran the show. They took a systematic and research-based approach, then put on a series of events—featuring people like Eleanor Roosevelt and Eve Curie—who brought thousands of women downtown. The Institute’s work continued into 1971.

PDF of Ridder article