FiliTour Nr. 4: Haus Lorenz

Success in a foreign country

For centuries, many Graubünden residents have emigrated abroad to escape economic hardship at home. Pol Lorenz (1761-1806) emigrated to Prague and opened his first coffee house "At the Golden Fountain" in 1785. The Renaissance building still stands today in a prominent location on the famous Karlsgasse. The success enabled him and his family to buy this upper-middle-class house in their homeland.

His grandson, the physician and scientist Dr. Paul Lorenz (1835-1915), was one of the co-founders of the Schatzalp Sanatorium in Davos and the Hotel Waldhaus in Flims. He was also a recognized naturalist.

The last permanent resident of the house was Bignia Lorenz (1907-2004). She was president of the women's association for a long time and campaigned for women's suffrage. During the Second World War, it housed officers, and in the basement there was a guard room for the Swiss army.

In the audio , Domenica Boutilly, a descendant of the Lorenz family, tells us about the importance of the house for the family to this day. The audio file can be found at the back of the pictures.