History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century/4/Lorenzo S. Coffin
LORENZO S. COFFIN was born in Alton, New Hampshire, on the 9th of April, 1823. He was reared on a farm with but little opportunity to secure an education. With two years' instruction in Oberlin College after leaving home he obtained a position as instructor in Geauga Seminary where James A. Garfield and the girl who afterwards became his wife, were pupils. In 1855 Mr. Coffin came to Iowa, taking a claim near Fort Dodge. Here he was elected superintendent of schools and made frequent addresses in the different parts of the county urging better methods of farming and improvement in the public schools. He was a frequent contributor to agricultural journals, and for several years conducted an agricultural department in the Fort Dodge Messenger. In 1883 he was appointed Railroad Commissioner, by Governor Sherman, serving five years. During his term it became his duty to investigate the cases of serious accidents and he became convinced that many of them might be avoided by the use of automatic couplers. From this time forward Mr. Coffin entered upon the formidable work of securing legislation to require the railroads of the country to equip their cars with automatic couplers. He has told the story of his successful work in the Annals of Iowa. It is sufficient to say that he was instrumental in procuring acts of the Iowa Legislature and also an act of Congress requiring the railroads to use the safety couplers. It is estimated that the loss of life of railroad employees has been reduced by this reform more than sixty per cent. Mr. Coffin has also for years carried on a movement among railroad men against the use of intoxicating liquors. His latest benevolent work is in behalf of discharged convicts from the penitentiaries. He has built on his farm a temporary home for this class of people called “Hope Hall,” where ex-prisoners may live until employment can be found for them. For more than twenty years Mr. Coffin has given a large share of his time to reform work, chiefly in the causes here mentioned.