Otto E. Dohrenwend was an investment banker from Scarsdale, New York

Scarsdale, New York

Scarsdale is a coterminous town and village in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the northern suburbs of New York City. The Town of Scarsdale is coextensive with the Village of Scarsdale, but the community has opted to operate solely with a village government, one of several villages...

, best known for his conservative political activism during the 1950s.

As chairman of the Scarsdale Citizens Committee, better known as the Committee of Ten, during the 1950s and 1960s, he challenged what he called Communist influence in the Scarsdale public schools.An investigation by the Scarsdale Town Club later rejected these claims. He later drew national attention when challenging the rights of supporters of the Freedom Riders to hold a fund-raising benefit in a public high school auditorium.

Dohrenwend was a senior partner in the brokerage firm of Baker, Weeks & Harden from 1936 to 1972. He also served as a member of the national American Legion

American Legion

The American Legion is a mutual-aid organization of veterans of the United States armed forces chartered by the United States Congress. It was founded to benefit those veterans who served during a wartime period as defined by Congress...

's Americanism Committee and on the board of trustees of Manhattanville College

Manhattanville College

Manhattanville College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college offering undergraduate and graduate degrees, located in Purchase, New York. Founded in 1841 it was known initially as Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart...

 in Purchase, New York

Purchase, New York

Purchase, New York is a hamlet of the town of Harrison, in Westchester County. Its ZIP code is 10577. Its name is derived from Harrison's purchase, for Harrison could have as much land as he could ride in one day...

.

He was married to the former Constance Wilckes.