Lorenz Hotel

The lot where the hotel stands was originally a swampland and a known malaria hotbed. However it was prime real estate because it was located next to the railroad tracks and just a stone's throw from the Redding Railroad Depot. Recently widowed Susan Lorenz knew it would be the perfect spot for a hotel. In 1901 Lorenz purchased a block of swampland next to the railroad tracks with her share of gold from a family-owned Trinity County gold mine. Construction began that year on the hotel and it was completed in 1902. The bricks were manufactured at the Holt and Gregg Co. Brick Manufacturing Plant in Anderson. The sandstone edging on the front and side facades were quarried locally. When it was completed it was considered one of Redding's most prestigious hotels. It had 44 rooms on each floor totaling 132 rooms. In later years each room contained a bath that reduced the number of rooms per floor to 26 totaling 78 rooms. It was the first building in Shasta County to have an elevator and it was the second four-story commercial building built in town. Today the hotel is the third-oldest brick building in Redding. In 1902 the Carnegie Library was built on the west side of the hotel in what had been Lorenz's garden. In 1962 the library building was demolished and the library moved to another building on Shasta Street. Library Park now occupies the spot where the library once stood and is the place where MarketFest is held every summer.