D. P. Loretz, born June 30, 1842, in Lincoln County, North Carolina, was of Swiss descent and one of five children of Daniel and Eliza (Reinhardt) Loretz. His great-grandfather, Andrew Loretz, was a German Reformed Church minister. D. P. Loretz served as a lieutenant in the Thirty-second North Carolina Regiment during the Civil War, participating in notable battles such as Spotsylvania and Winchester. After the war, he relocated to Conway, Arkansas, and later Mayflower, engaging in farming. In 1867, he married Anna Abernathy of Jacksonville, Alabama. Loretz was active in the community, serving as postmaster and holding several local offices. He preserved historical documents, including his grandfather’s passport from Switzerland and an autograph album from the late 18th century.
D. P. Loretz, of Swiss descent, was born on June 30, 1842, in Lincoln County, N.C., and is one of five children born to Daniel and Eliza (Reinhardt) Loretz. The great-grandfather, Andrew Loretz, was a minister of the German Reformed Church. His son, also named Andrew, was born in 1761 and came to America from Switzerland in 1784, landing at Baltimore. A short time afterward, he married Mrs. Schaeffer of Hagerstown, Md. A few months later, they moved to Lincoln County, N.C., where he continued the good work of his father until his death in 1812. His son, Daniel, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born in 1802 and died in 1851. He was a successful farmer, living in Lincoln County, and was respected by all who knew him. His brothers were prominent men, holding high offices at different times. The wife of Daniel Loretz was the daughter of John and Anna (Moore) Reinhardt, both natives of North Carolina.
In 1861, D. P. Loretz enlisted and served as lieutenant in the Thirty-second North Carolina Regiment in the valley campaigns in Virginia, but was seriously wounded at Winchester, Va., when under Jubal Early, at the time the latter was defeated by Sheridan. He was in the battles of Spotsylvania, etc., and at Norfolk saw the ever-to-be-remembered fight between the Merrimac and Monitor. He belonged to the first division, commanded by Huger, and was afterward transferred to the Army of Northern Virginia. After he was wounded, he remained at home until the close of the war, when he sold his farm and moved to North Alabama, and from there to Conway, Ark. In 1880, he moved to Mayflower and engaged in farming, owning several lots in connection with his farm.
In July 1867, Mr. Loretz was united in marriage with Anna Abernathy of Jacksonville, Ala., daughter of Miles W. Abernathy. Mr. and Mrs. Loretz are members of the Protestant Episcopal Church, and Mr. Loretz is postmaster and has held several other local offices in the community. He is a member of Pat Cleburne’s Post of Confederate Veterans. Our subject has in his possession numerous papers published at Richmond, Va., and North Carolina, reflecting the opinions of those people at the time of the war, also the passport his grandfather carried from Switzerland to America. Another item which he considers priceless, not because of its intrinsic value, but from old association’s sake, is an autograph album belonging to his grandfather. This album is bound in calf with gilt edge and is in a high state of preservation. The selections were mostly written in Bavaria and are dated from 1779 to 1784, productions principally of his schoolmates.