Theo Alice Ruggles was born to Cyrus Washburn and Anna Holmes (Baker) Ruggles in Brookline, MA on January 27, 1871.  Her artistic talent was evident early to her parents as she worked with modeling clay and, later, to the public, when she modeled a "Reclining Horse" from the snow in her front yard during the winter of 1885. 

In 1886, Ruggles was placed under the tutelage of sculptor, Henry Hudson Kitson.  In 1887, Ruggles, her mother, and Henry Kitson traveled to Paris, France where she studied and worked for the next three years.  While abroad, Ruggles received two honorable mentions for her work.  The first, at the International Exposition of 1889, was for a life-sized statue of a boy entitled _Aux Bords de l'Oise."  The second honor was awarded at the Paris Salon of 1890 for "Young Orpheus."  She was the youngest sculptor to have received such awards. 

Ruggles and Kitson married on June 29, 1893. She continued her work and became known for her military sculptures and monuments. 

Theo Alice Ruggles Kitson

Theo Alice Ruggles Kitson sculpted a design, "The Wounded Color Sergeant" by Alphonso T. Merrill,  to commemorate the lives of those who died in the Civil War.  The monument was paid for with funds from the estate of Justin Allen, M.D. Located on the Veterans Memorial Green in Topsfield, MA, the monument was dedicated on July 25, 1914.

Theo Alice Ruggles Kitson died in 1932 in Framingham, MA.

References

ancestry.com. (2013) Theo Alice Ruggles. Retrieved April 2, 2013 from http://trees.ancestrylibrary.com/tree/12060416/person/-343527737

Theo Alice Ruggles Kitson [image]. Retrieved from http://www.nps.gov/vick/historyculture/theo-alice-ruggles-kitson.htm

Willard, F. E. & Livermore, M. A. R. (Ed.). (1897). American Women: fifteen hundred biographies with over 1,400 portraits; a comprehensive encyclopedia of the lives and achievements of American women during the nineteenth century (Vol. 2). New York, NY: Mast, Crowell, and Kirkpatrick. Retrieved April 2, 2013 from Google Books

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Topsfield Times: A Community and Local History Resource

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