Durham, N. N.  "Spokane and the Inland Empire: History of the City of Spokane
and Spokane County Washington."  Vol. 2.  S. J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1912.

ORRIS DORMAN

Orris Dorman, whose contagious enthusiasm has been a factor in the upbuilding,
settlement, development and progress of the west, is justly classed with the
representative business men of Spokane, where he has important realty holdings.
He is here engaged in the real-estate, investment and banking business, his
association with the latter being that of vice president of the Fidelity
National Bank. His birth occurred in Sigourney, Iowa, April 28, 1871, and he is
therefore yet a young man. His salient qualities include the enterprise and
ambition of youth and in the conduct of his affairs he brooks no obstacles that
can be overcome by persistent and earnest purpose and effort. His father, Hiner
Dorman, was a native of Indiana and represented an old Pennsylvania family of
German descent. He devoted his life to farming, save for a period of nearly four
years, when he served as a private in the Thirty-third Iowa Infantry, during the
Civil war, his regiment being attached to the Army of the Mississippi. His
mother was a descendant of General Morgan of Revolutionary war fame. Hiner
Dorman was united in marriage to Miss Martha Knox, a cousin of James Knox Polk,
at one time president of the United States. She is living in Ritzville,
Washington, and is of English descent. Her father's name figured prominently in
connection with the family tree, of which Press Knox was a leading
representative. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Hiner Dorman there were born three sons and
three daughters: Orris; Ortho, who is associated with his brother in the
real-estate business and who married Alice Jay; Jess, a newspaper man, residing
at Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Lois, the wife of John M. Woehr, the owner of an
orange ranch at Redlands, California; Alice, the wife of V. A. Chargois, of
Ritzville, Washington; and Lou, who is making her home with her mother in
Ritzville.

Orris Dorman was a young lad when brought by his parents to Washington in 1887,
and in the common schools and the Normal school of Cheney he pursued his
education. He then turned his attention to the newspaper field, becoming
connected with the Ritzville Times, continuing in that field from 1895 until
1898. During the succeeding three years he was connected with mercantile and
real-estate interests in that place, and in 1903 he came to Spokane, where he
concentrated his energies upon real-estate investments and banking. Here he
devotes much time to financial interests as vice president of the Fidelity
National Bank. He first became associated with real-estate interests, when in 1
897 and 1 898 he invested heavily in unimproved lands in the Big Bend and
Palouse country. This formed the basis for his present extensive holdings. With
a keen insight into what the future held for the wheat country, lie wisely made
his purchases of property. He was one of the first to advocate the advisability
of investing in those districts and at an early day would frequently go aboard
an immigration train from the east with dodgers, which referred to the hidden
wealth of the virgin soil. His belief in the country and his activity in
exploiting its resources were the cause of much of the material development of
this part of the state. He has been the means of bringing much money into the
country, peopling a vast tract of semi-arid land, which has been converted
through the labors of the settlers into one of the garden spots of the world.
Mr. Dorman still owns finely improved wheat ranches in Whitman county and time
has proven the wisdom of his judgment and his investments. His stock in the
Fidelity National Bank also brings him a good annual dividend and he has had
active voice in the management of the bank as its vice president since January,
1911. Some idea of the volume of business transacted by this bank may be gained
from the fact that the deposits in June, 1911, were one million, five hundred
and twenty thousand, three hundred and fifty-one dollars, and sixty-two cents,
while on the 7th of January of the same year they were only one million, one
hundred and eight thousand, one hundred and thirty-nine dollars, and twenty-four
cents, showing a gain in five months of four hundred and twelve thousand, two
hundred and twelve dollars, and thirty-eight cents. The capital stock is two
hundred thousand dollars, the surplus and undivided profits fifty-four thousand,
nine hundred and thirty-five dollars, and eighty-six cents, arid there is in
circulation two hundred thousand dollars. The bank is certainly in a most
healthy condition and its business activity and success are attributable in no
small degree to the efforts of Mr. Dorman. Mr. Dorman is also connected with the
firm of Dorman Brothers as president, and he is vice president of the Otis
Orchard Company, president of the Newman Lake Canal Company, and secretary of
the Inland Securities Company.

He does not concentrate his energies, however, upon business affairs alone but
cooperates in many movements having direct effect upon the general welfare,
upbuilding and prosperity of the community. He is a director of the Young Men's
Christian Association of Spokane and has ever taken a most helpful interest in
its work during the two years of his connection therewith. In politics he is an
active democrat and was elected chairman of the county central committee in
1910, but press of business made it impossible for him to accept the position.
Frequently he has been a delegate to the city, county and state conventions, and
he does all in his power to promote the growth and insure the success of the
party. He cooperates in the projects for municipal progress that find their root
in the Chamber of Commerce and no movement for the welfare of Spokane seeks his
aid in vain. Fraternally he is connected with Spokane Lodge, No. 228, B. P. O.
E. and he is a member of the Inland Club. He attends the Christian church.

On the 9th of March, 1898, at Walla Walla, Washington, Mr. Dorman was married to
Miss Etta E. Zaring, a daughter of Alvin and Mercy Zaring, the former a pioneer
of that country and now a retired orchardist, who came across the plains in
1862. The mother is long since deceased. As the name indicates, the family is of
German descent. Mr. and Mrs. Dorman have become the parents of four children:
Donald O., aged twelve; Dorothy M., aged ten; Martha A., aged eight, and Richard
A., aged six, all now in school. For twenty-five years Mr. Dorman has been a
resident of Washington and has therefore witnessed much of the growth and
development of Spokane and the surrounding country. That he has made wise use of
his time and opportunities is evidenced in the success which has come to him,
and that the course he has followed is consistent with the highest principles of
manhood and citizenship, is indicated in the warm regard which is uniformly
extended to him.

*******************

Submitted to the Washington Biographies Project in June 2017 by Diane Wright.
Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned
above.