Russell Wayne Kruse (December 9, 1922 – May 4, 2007) was an American

auctioneer An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ...

best known for building the business of auctioning

classic car A classic car is typically described as an automobile 25 years or older, although a car's age is not the only requirement it must meet before being considered a "classic." However, a standard criteria for recognizing cars as classics does not ex ...

s through Kruse International. Born in

Auburn, Indiana Auburn is a city in DeKalb County, Indiana, United States. The population was 13,412 at the 2020 census. Founded in 1836 by Wesley Park (1811–1868), the city is the county seat of DeKalb County. Auburn is also known as ''Home of the Classics' ...

, he took up farming after graduating from high school. After losing crops to flooding two years in a row, he took up auctioneering to cover the costs of raising his seven children. He attended the Reppert School of Auctioneering in December 1952 and started a local real estate and farm auction business. He was a licensed auctioneer, real estate broker and certified residential appraiser in the state of Indiana. In 1971, the Auburn Chamber of Commerce needed fundraising for their annual classic-car show. Kruse suggested auctioning off some of the antique cars. When a bidder's $61,000 bid for a locally-made

Duesenberg Duesenberg Automobile & Motors Company, Inc. was an American race car, racing and luxury car, luxury automobile manufacturer founded in Indianapolis, Indiana, by brothers Fred Duesenberg, Fred and August Duesenberg in 1920. The company is kn ...

was turned down, the press picked up the story, and his fame as a car auctioneer took off. He started the Kruse Auction Institute in 1972 to give pre-licensing training to auctioneers. Russell was on the original Indiana Board of Auctioneers and served as chairman. He was also a past president of the Indiana Auctioneer's Association, and a member of their hall of fame,Indiana Auctioneers Association
along with two of his son's - Dean Kruse and Dennis Kruse. Because of the lucrative divisions that auctioned real estate and oil field equipment,

ITT ITT may refer to: Communication *Tank phone, Infantry-Tank Telephone, a device allowing infantrymen to speak to the occupants of armoured vehicles. Mathematics *Intuitionistic type theory, other name of Martin-Löf Type Theory *Intensional typ ...

bought Kruse International in 1981, but the family bought it back in 1987.

eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

then bought the company in 1999 but sold it back in 2003. Three of his sons are involved in the auction business: Dean Kruse,

Dennis Kruse Dennis K. Kruse (born October 7, 1946) is an American businessman and politician. Kruse was a founder of the auction business Kruse International before entered politics as a Republican. He was a member of the Indiana House of Representatives ...

and Daniel Kruse, as well as eight grandchildren. He founded the Kruse Auction Institute in 1972, and served as an instructor at the Reppert School of Auctioneering from 1996 until his death in 2007. His first wife, Luella (Boger), the mother of his seven children, died in 2000. Kruse died in

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 census ...

of a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

, aged 84.Martin, Douglas (May 8, 2007). Russell W. Kruse, Auctioneer of Classic Autos, dies at 85. ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

References

External links

Kruse International

Reppert School of Auctioneering's official website

Kruse Auction Institute's official website
1922 births 2007 deaths People from Auburn, Indiana People from Fort Wayne, Indiana American auctioneers 20th-century American businesspeople {{US-business-bio-1920s-stub