California Store

Merchant
1878-1881

Russell Street
Orangeburg, SC

FAMILIES: Sorentrue; Loryea

Around 1870, Jacob Sorentrue (1858-1903) immigrated to the United States from Poland. After he arrived in the United States, he lived in Charleston with an uncle, until he moved to Orangeburg, South Carolina as a young man. In 1878, he opened the California Store with Jewish merchant Joseph Loryea (1848-1929). From their store, the pair sold groceries, dry goods, clothing, and lamps. The following year, Sorentrue bought out Loryea’s portion of the business. He then rebranded the California Store as J. I. Sorentrue in 1881, and again as Sorentrue’s Palace Bazaar in 1892. After he became the sole proprietor of the business, Sorentrue largely abandoned the grocery and clothing side of the business, and instead sold lamps and crockery. Sorentrue continued to run the business until his death in 1903.

Main Image: California Store advertisement. Reprinted from The Orangeburg Democrat, January 17, 1879.

The Jewish Merchant Project is supported by the generosity of the Henry & Sylvia Yaschik Foundation and the Stanley B. Farbstein Endowment at the Coastal Community Foundation.

JHSSC Office
Sylvia Vlosky Yaschik Jewish Studies Center
96 Wentworth Street
Charleston, SC 29424
Phone: 843 953 3918