Lorenzo Rosenthal, long-time civic and business leader, was born in Neenah, Wisconsin, on August 4, 1864. He completed his primary education in the Beloit Public School system and then attended Beloit College Academy. While he attended that school he became a star pitcher for the Beloit College baseball team. He is credited with making the Line City Club the best known of any baseball club in Southern Wisconsin. Although he was offered berths with several professional baseball clubs, he elected to remain in Beloit.

He was employed by the Beloit Iron Works. After several years there he left and became a representative of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. Mr. Rosenthal was a familiar figure in and about the Beloit Post Office for about 37 years beginning in 1895 as a postal clerk. He advanced by a series of promotions to the highest office of local postal employees, namely assistant postmaster in 1901 and postmaster in 1925. He served as Beloit’s assistant postmaster for 25 years and after his appointment as postmaster he served in that capacity for nine and one-half years until his retirement. He received his last appointment when Warren G. Harding became President of the United States and then continued serving during the Coolidge and Hoover admini-strations. He assisted in the selection of the site on the northeast corner of Grand Avenue and Pleasant Street when the office was to move from its location on Grand Avenue just east of the bridge. That building has now become the Beloit Public Library.

He also served on several governmental committees who were successful in changes and improvements in civil service ratings for postal employees. He became secretary of the local Democratic Party Club for Cleveland-Stevenson and remained a member of the party. He was a member of the Beloit Boosters Club which was a branch of the Chamber of Commerce, of which he became a member in later years.

He was a member of the St. Thomas Catholic Church and also helped in the organization of St. Paul’s Catholic Church. For his assistance in this latter project, he received citations from Pope Pius II and Archbishop Stritch of Milwaukee. He was a member of the Wisconsin Power & Light Company Shareholders Committee. He was also president of the Wisconsin Assistant Postmasters Association and very active in that association. He was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Beloit Board of Education and was elected afterward to that office.

In his retirement years he gave much of his time to the study of the educational needs of the Beloit schools. Another interest of his was serving as a Trustee of the Beloit Savings Bank and as secretary of the segregated trust at the time of his death. He always maintained an interest in sports of all kinds. He was active in bowling and participated in several leagues. He organized the Beloit Bowling Association and became it first president. He was inducted in the Beloit Bowling Hall of Fame. Lorenzo Rosenthal died on November 13, 1935.