Jerry Stewart Lausmann (March 3, 1930 – January 6, 2012), was the second longest-serving mayor of Medford, Oregon.
Early life
Jerry Stewart Lausmann was born March 3, 1930, in Portland, Oregon.[1] He was adopted by Anton and Grace Lausmann.[2] When he was 12, the family moved to Medford, Oregon, where Anton started a sawmill.[2] He graduated from Medford High in 1948, and spent three years in the U.S. Navy before graduating from Oregon State University.[2] He also attended St. Mary's College in Winona, Minnesota.[1]
Lausmann married his first wife Sally Moffitt on 12/27/1951,[3] but they divorced in 1953.[4] He married Catherine Kennedy in 1955.[5] His next marriage was to a woman named Marion and they divorced in 1963.[6] Lausmann married Donnis O. Briesath on June 5, 1965, in Winona County, Minnesota.[7]
Jerry took over his father's lumber company after his father was unable to run it, and the company eventually diversified into real estate.[2] He invented the Smokeless Burner, and held three patents for it in Canada, Japan, and the United States.[1]
Jerry was also an occasional member of his father Anton's musical group, Lausmann's Lousy Loggers Band.[8]
His four children were Ann Lausmann-Istel, Tony Lausmann, Craig Lausmann, and Sharon Smale-Lausmann.[2] These children were all born prior to his marriage to Donnis.[1]
Politics
Lausmann ran for Congress twice unsuccessfully in the 1970s.[2] He was elected mayor of Medford in 1986.[2] He was mayor of Medford for six consecutive 2-year terms, and was the second longest-serving mayor the history of the city.[1] He was the mayor of Medford until 1998.[2] In 1999, he was chosen as the "Citizen of the Year" by the Medford Chamber of Commerce.[1]
Lausmann died on January 6, 2012, at Rogue Valley Manor, where he lived with Donnis since spring 2011.[2] He is entombed in the Medford IOOF Cemetery mausoleum.
References
- ^ a b c d e f "Jerry Stewart Lausmann". Ashland Daily Tidings. Jan 12, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Valencia, Mandy (Jan 8, 2012). "'He will always be Mr. Medford'". Mail Tribune.
- ^ "Medford Mail Tribune from Medford, Oregon on November 4, 1951 · Page 19".
- ^ Mail Tribune, 4 Oct 1953
- ^ Mail Tribune, Dec 1954
- ^ Mail Tribune, 16 Jan 1963
- ^ "Jerry S. Lausmann, "Minnesota Marriage Index, 1958-2001"". familysearch.org. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
- ^ "Digging in the FHS Crates: Lausmann’s Lousy Loggers Band". Forest History Society. Retrieved on February 27, 2022.