Lorenz Weather

The title of this article is ambiguous. For the politician of the same name, see Lorenz Wetter (Politiker, 1726)

Lorenz Wetter, 19th Mayor of Appenzell Ausserrhoden 1729–1733.

Lorenz Wetter (born February 9, 1654 in Gais ; † February 24, 1734 in Herisau ; authorized to reside in Gais and from 1701 in Herisau) was a Swiss merchant , long-time member of the Small Council and mayor and delegate from the Canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden .

Life

Lorenz Wetter was a son of Ulrich Wetter, a farmer and mercenary , and Gertrud Kern. In 1690 he married Barbara Ziegler, daughter of Adrian Ziegler, a doctor in Gais and brother-in-law of Johannes Grob . His patron and later father-in-law enabled Wetter to get a good commercial education in St. Gallen and from 1670 to 1675 in Lyon . There Wetter began to deal with his own trading business. From 1675 to 1690 he worked as a merchant at the Thormann trading company in Bern , where he made a considerable fortune. In 1690 Wetter moved to Herisau and let himself be introduced to canvas manufacture by clerk Anton Schiess . He worked in the textile trade with him and with Jeremias Meyer, his brothers-in-law . In 1699 he had his trade mark registered in the trade mark register of the Lyon merchants and from then on made regular contributions to the subsidy fund of the Swiss merchants in Lyon. In addition to the export of linen, Wetter traded in powder, saltpeter , spices, wool and horses as well as in goods and mortgages and carried out money and bills of exchange. His company soon became one of the leading trading houses in Ausserrhoden. He was also the owner of a mill on the Glatt in Herisau. As a climber, Wetter had to fight for his position against the Zellweger and Tanner family , who dominated Ausserrhoden's economy and politics. He became the leader of the democratic opposition and shaped the political landscape for years. The turmoil of the land trade from 1732 to 1734, in which Wetter and his business partner Meyer were the leading heads of the party of the hard , turned into his personal triumph. From 1718 to 1727 he was provincial cap master , from 1727 to 1729 provincial governor and from 1729 to 1733 governor and delegate of the daily statutes.

Literature and Sources

• Peter Holderegger: Entrepreneurs in Appenzellerland: History of industrial entrepreneurship in Appenzell Ausserrhoden from the beginning to the present. Herisau: Schläpfer 1992, p. 64 and p. 96.
• Letters from Lorenz Wetter in the Appenzell Ausserrhoden State Archives

Web links

• Thomas Fuchs: Lorenz Wetter. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland . October 28, 2013 , accessed April 16, 2020 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ On the function of the state offices (state builder, state ensign, state governor, governor) cf. Otto Tobler: Development and functions of the state offices in Appenzell A. Rh. From the end of the 14th century to the present. Diss. University of Bern 1905. In: Appenzellische Jahrbücher 34 (1906), pp. 1–164, here above all from p. 71. Web access via e-periodica.ch.

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