Sebastian Fabian Lay had a long and rich history in La Porte. A prominent citizen, he was a pioneer in the city’s restaurant and hotel business and is often credited with helping La Porte earn its nickname, “The Maple City.”
According to U.S. Census records, he was born on January 20, 1829, in Bötzingen, Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. He moved to La Porte in 1851.
The 1860 U.S. Census lists him as a farmer living in Center Township, La Porte County. By 1870, his occupation is recorded as “restaurant and bakery.”
An article in The South Bend Tribune on November 2, 1972, reported that in 1859 Mayor H. H. Whitehead hired Sebastian Lay to plant 2,400 maple trees in La Porte, lining roads such as Michigan Avenue, Indiana Avenue, Prairie Street, Harrison Street, and Noble Street.
Sebastian Lay passed away on July 28, 1901, and is buried in Pine Lake Cemetery in La Porte.
A detailed historical account of his life is shown below, from Daniels, E. D. (1904), A Twentieth Century History and Biographical Record of La Porte County, Indiana.
Unfortunately, we have not been able to find any photos or details about his bottling business.
1) LAPORTE, Ind., July 29.—Two pioneer residents of Laporte died to-day. They are Sebastian Lay, a retired hotel man and opera house manager, aged seventy-two, and Mrs. Catherine Gaw, aged eighty-two. Mr. Lay was in the California gold rush of 1849. Charles E. Goodall, postmaster at Tracy, Laporte county, died of quick consumption, aged forty. The Indianapolis Journal, July 30, 1901.
La Porte County Directories
1862-1863 — Not listed.
1893-94 — Lay Sebastian, proprietor of Lay’s Restaurant and European Hotel at 610 Main, home at 605 Jefferson.
— Lay’s Opera House, NW corner of Main and Clay.
1899 — Lay Sebastian F (A D), retired, 808 Michigan Ave.
Main Street, LaPorte, late 1800s. Businesses visible include the European Restaurant & Bakery, L. O. Abbey, and Richter & Co., with horse-drawn sleighs on the street. The image was labeled by CETA as “Sebastian Lay and son at 610 Main Street, La Porte.”
Sebastian Lay (1829–1901) was a prosperous LaPorte farmer, restaurateur, businessman, and Civil War veteran. He built several prominent buildings on Main Street, including Lay’s Opera House at the corner of Main and Clay Avenue.
610 Main Street is the building on the far left.
Slide from the Michigan City Public Library / La Porte County CETA Special Projects program.. The building was razed in 1932.
