"Portrait and Biographical Record of Western Oregon, containing original
sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present."  Chicago: Chapman
Pub. Co., 1909. p. 685.
 
NICHOLAS LORENZ

     The national traits of the German fatherland are fortunately assimilated to
good advantage with the life and conditions of America, and the true-hearted
sons who cross the seas to our shores bring with them a guarantee of good faith
found to he increasingly earnest and true as success comes to them, and they
take on the character of a freedom loving and resourceful people. This trait of
adaptive-ness has been particularly marked in the career of Nicholas Lorenz, for
many years a miner in California, but since coming to Oregon a merchant in
Coquille and Bandon, as well as a promoter of important business enterprises,
and prominent Democratic politician.
     In the town of Langenfeld, Prussia, where he was born April 21, 1836, Mr.
Lorenz received a fair common school education, and was the youngest in a family
of five sons and one daughter. His father, Joseph, and his mother, Mary Ann
Lorenz, were natives of the same part of the empire, and the former was a farmer
for the greater part of his life. Joseph Lorenz carried around with him scars
received in the Napoleonic wars, for like a true son of his country he served
his time in the army, and at a time when war was rampant and boundary lines by
no means certain. Eventually he became mayor or burgomaster of Langenfeld, and
was an important citizen and agriculturist of the region where his entire life
was spent. He lived to be sixty-nine years of age.
     Joseph Lorenz must have inspired his sons with laudable ambitions, for one
of them came to America at an early age, and was later joined in Johnstown, Pa.,
by Nicholas, then sixteen years of age. The latter lived in Johnstown until
1853, in the meantime learning the language of his adopted country, as well as
its possibilities and limitations. He came to the west by way of Nicaragua, and
after locating in Trinity county, Cal., mined with fair success. He liked mining
and the excitement of the camps, and in time his perseverance was rewarded by
the ownership of the Red Hill mine, which lie found, developed and finally sold
at a large profit. This was in 1887, and he had lived in the rough and border
districts of California for thirty-four years. Naturally he began to appreciate
more settled and reliable means of livelihood, and it was with a determination
to succeed that he came to Oregon in the fall of 1887, and invested some of his
earnings in a general merchandise business. This occupation also was to his
liking, and he succeeded, in spite of competition and many obstacles, in time
establishing a branch store at Bandon. In these enterprises Mr. Lorenz has been
ably assisted by his capable sons, who have been reared to industry and thrift,
and have been given liberal and practical educations. He returned to the east in
1869, and in Wisconsin married Caroline Bohn, who was born in Bavaria. Germany,
and came to the United States with her parents when six years of age. This was
in 1855, and her father, Henry, located on a farm near Westbend, Wis., where the
balance of his life was spent. There have been six children of his union, four
sons and two daughters. Of these. Henry and Eddie, the oldest and fifth of the
children, are in the Coquille store, while Francis George and Charles Fred have
charge of the Bandon store. Emma Pauline, the oldest daughter and fourth child,
is living at home, as is also Edna the youngest in the family.
     Mr. Lorenz has invested heavily in town and country property, thereby
giving evidence of his satisfaction with this part of the west. His possessions
include stores and business blocks in both Coquille and Bandon, and in each town
he has a stock of about $8,000. In 1896 he erected one of the finest residences
in Coquille, in which he spends more and more time as his sons are able to take
from him his former large responsibility. Mr. Lorenz has taken an active
interest in the dairy industry in Coos county, and was one of the prime
promoters of the first creamery erected in Coquille in 1890. He has been a
Democrat all his voting life, and aside from serving on the council many terms
has been city mayor for one term. He is fraternally connected with the Masons,
Ancient Order of United Workman, and the Eastern Star, and holds a prominent
place in the social as well as business world of the county.


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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in March 2013 by Diana Smith.  Submitter
has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.