He graduated from Columbia University in 1903 and joined the family paper shortly afterwards.
In 1927, he and his brothers purchased The New York Journal of Commerce and The St. Paul Dispatch and The Pioneer Press.
[2] In 1938, Ridder became publisher of The Dispatch and The Pioneer Press and was named president in 1952.
In 1973, he was named chairman emeritus of Ridder Publications.
[2] Ridder died on May 5, 1975, at 92 years old in West Palm Beach, Florida.