Ritz, Philip

Philip Ritz (October 5, 1827 - February 7, 1889) was an American statesman, orchardist, and publisher based in Walla Walla, Washington Territory. Ritz was born in Bartville, Pennsylvania. He followed the Gold Rush to California, living for a short period in Placerville, before moving to Corvallis, Oregon by 1850. There he established himself as an Orchardist, planting over 100,000 trees. From 1866 he became an ardent supporter of the Northern Pacific Railroad, like due to his experience traveling throughout Oregon as an orchardist. He wrote various appeals to Congress to support the railroad and acquire more than 10,000 acres of Washington real estate. and was an early emigrant to Washington Territory, where he became a successful orchard owner and local statesmen. In 1889, Ritz ran against Miles C. Moore in an unsuccessful bid for the governorship of Washington Territory. The town of Ritzville, Washington, is named after Ritz, who founded a homestead there in 1878.