Ryke’s Bakery is a Muskegon family business born of the Great Depression. It’s founder, John Th. Ryke, received training and experience as a pastry baker and chef in hotels and bakeries in his native country, the Netherlands.

He also worked as a cook on the passenger steamship Rotterdam. His last voyage across the Atlantic was in 1915 when he came to America to marry his fiancée, Henrietta, who had emigrated from Holland with her parents a year earlier. The newlyweds settled in Muskegon and built a home on the corner of Larch Avenue and Smith Street.

Ryke’s first job in Muskegon was at Campbell, Wyant and Cannon Foundry. In his twenty-two years at the company he worked his way up to core room foreman. When his hours were cut back at the foundry because of a decline in business in 1932, Ryke was determined to earn more money to support his growing family by doing the work he knew best – baking.

Soon Ryke began baking Dutch butter cookies in the family kitchen. He insisted that only the finest-quality ingredients be used. All the sifting, mixing, stirring, cutting, and other operations were done by hand. Mrs. Ryke and the children, when they were old enough, assisted with the work.

At first he gave samples to neighbors and friends, and the Ryke children took cookies to their schoolteachers and classmates. As word spread of the tasty Dutch treats, the townspeople began to buy the cookies. To keep up with the demand, Ryke soon had to purchase a small oven, a showcase, scales, and a supply of paper bags. Two of the Ryke daughters pulled a coaster wagon to deliver baked goods to customers on Saturday mornings.

Soon orders began to come in by the telephone, and Ryke made deliveries with the family car. When she turned fourteen, Marie Ryke, the oldest daughter, obtained a driver’s permit and began to make deliveries so that her father could devote more time to baking. At that time Ryke was making four varieties of butter cookies. Each was popular but the thin wafer variety was favored by most customers.

In 1935 Ryke received his first order for a wedding cake. Daughter Marie, then seventeen years old, remembers that the order caused quite a stir and resulted in “something special” for the wedding party. Marie also recalls that the word of Ryke’s tasty products reached the Sylvan Beach resort area near Whitehall, where several prominent people spent their summers. The most famous customer to visit the bakery was James Roosevelt, son of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

In 1937 a small garage next to the family home was raised and a bakery was built. That same year Ryke made the decision to quit his foundry job and devote all his efforts to baking. Henrietta, who had experience as a clerk in her father’s meat market, and the six Ryke children all helped with the business.

Ryke’s Bakery’s first employee outside of the family was a retired Dutch baker who worked part-time. Later a full-time baker was added, and neighborhood teenagers were hired to work after school and on Saturdays. The product line at this time included special cakes, breads, rolls and a variety of pastries.

In 1967, the bakery business was moved into its present location, a remodeled building on Terrace Street and Laketon Avenue that had housed the Sanitary Dairy Company. Later, a Dutch coffee shop serving soup, sandwiches, and baked goods was added to the bakery business in the larger building.

After John’s death in 1968, his son, Henry, and oldest daughter, Marie Borgeson, took over management of the bakery. When Mrs. Borgeson retired in 1981, Henry became the sole owner of the bakery. His wife, Ellen, entered the business in 1982.

More Information

• Timeline
• More History
• Sanitary Dairy History
• Ryke’s: Say It Right, Like "Bike"