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Over a Century on Walloon By Lauren Macintyre
RIGHT: Sisters Jean and Anne Bippus at Walloon in the 1930’s. BELOW: Jean Bippus Ringer and her daughter Anne Ringer Whitlock on the porch of the family’s 1907 cottage this summer. LEFT: Ted Ringer, star football player at Northwestern University, came to Walloon after marrying college sweetheart Jean Bippus in 1958. BELOW: Ted Ringer and son Jim, carrying on the Bippus family fishing traditions, around 1990. (Photos courtesy of the family)
OVER A CENTURY ON WALLOON
The Bippus/Ringer Family of South Shore
By Lauren Macintyre
Lured by the prospect of fresh northern air and a beautiful lake, in 1906, James Frederick Bippus and wife Myrtle Bippus made the trip from Huntington, Indiana to Walloon.
They certainly weren't alone. The sparkling waters, cerulean skies and verdant forests of Walloon had already attracted a number of other Huntington residents. So many came, in fact, that the Huntington faction had established its own camp on South Shore, between Fort Wayne Camp and the Thomas House. Among the Indiana natives already making the trek to the lake were such longtime Walloon families as Taylor, Beck, Purviance and Dick.
James Frederick (J. Fred) was a prominent businessman in Huntington, where he built the elegant Hotel LaFontaine, once a popular spot for the rich and famous. He followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, both astute businessmen. The town of Huntington owes much to the prominent and philanthropic Bippus family, whose ventures included oil and banking.
The Bippus family rented a cottage that first year at Walloon, but the following year J. Fred bought 142 feet of shoreline on South Shore for $1,400 and then an additional 25 feet for $300 from Ben Ellis. He then built two houses with a connecting porch for his family. J. Fred's mother Sarah Purviance Bippus, widow of George Bippus, joined them in the smaller of the two.
The cottages had no electricity so kerosene lamps and a wood stove were utilized, according to George Bippus. At one time the Bippus property included a boathouse with elaborate decorative woodwork called "Arbor Court."
Now 115 years later, the two charming cottages built by the Bippus family still stand on Sweet Pea Lane. The smaller of them, originally built for Sarah Purviance Bippus, has been occupied for many years by Jean Bippus Ringer, great granddaughter of Sarah and Jacob, and her family. Jean's sister Anne lives in California but still visits the lake.
Jean, whose parents were George and Helen Rust Bippus, has filled the family cottage with vintage family photos and Walloon memorabilia. The original front porch was screened in to provide more interior space, and two bedrooms were added to the original three, but the cottage retains its charm and sense of history. Jean's mother Helen and sister Anne were both artists and their delightful painted furniture still adorns the cottage.
A talented musician, Jean studied music at Northwestern University. There she met her future husband Ted Ringer, a football standout from South Bend, Indiana, who was Coach Ara Parseghian's first team captain at Northwestern. An ROTC student, he went on to serve two years in the Marines before taking jobs in the
