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Working Women: Domestic Servants in La Crosse

As long as there have been wealthy families in large homes, there have been domestic workers supporting them. In La Crosse, many young, single, Norwegian immigrants worked in domestic service.
(written by Meghan Hoefling, Archives staff) As long as there have been wealthy families in large homes, there have been domestic workers supporting them. Domestic work has lik… https://archives.lacrosselibrary.org/blog/working-women-domestic-servants-in-la-crosse/

Our Lady of Lourdes

In less than 30 years at the beginning of the 20th century, Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church went from an exciting new opportunity for Syrian Catholics in North La Crosse to a dilapidated building in such disrepair that it was unceremoniously razed to …
(written by Scott Brouwer, Archives staff) La Crosse Tribune 19 August 1934 In less than 30 years at the beginning of the 20th century, Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Ch… https://archives.lacrosselibrary.org/blog/our-lady-of-lourdes/

La Crosse’s German Vereins: Their Rise and Decline, Part 2

When the Great War broke out in 1914, German Americans found themselves sympathizing with their homeland politics, yet firmly identifying as American. When the US left its neutrality behind and joined the conflict in 1917, these German Americans had to de…
(Written by Gabriel Eagon, UWL Capstone Project, edited by Jenny DeRocher, Archives Staff) By 1914, La Crosse’s German community had experienced a demographic decline for nearly… https://archives.lacrosselibrary.org/blog/la-crosses-german-vereins-the-consequences-of-world-war-i-part-2/

La Crosse's German Vereins: Their Rise and Decline, Part 1

La Crosse is known to have strong German roots, thanks to things like the brewing industry and the large annual Oktoberfest celebration. But how did early, first-generation German immigrants socialize and preserve their culture? They created Vereins—socie…
(Written by Gabriel Eagon, UWL Capstone Project, edited by Jenny DeRocher, Archives Staff) Many readers will no doubt be familiar with La Crosse’s German roots, thanks to the ci… https://archives.lacrosselibrary.org/blog/la-crosses-german-vereins-their-rise-and-decline-part-1/

Frohsinn Singing Society

Through much of the scrutiny and cultural pressure placed on German-Americans in Wisconsin during the First and Second World Wars, the Frohsinn Singing Society, a German-American singing group in La Crosse, met and raised their voices on high.
(written by Hannah L. Weber, Archives intern) Frohsinn Singing Society, 1907; Nord Stern 50th Anniversary special issue, p. 77 As citizens of La Crosse, Wiscons… https://archives.lacrosselibrary.org/blog/frohsinn-singing-society/

Syrians in La Crosse

In the last decades of the nineteenth century and the first decade of the twentieth, around 100,000 immigrants from the Ottoman province of Syria (what is now Syria, Lebanon and part of Jordan) came to the United States seeking economic opportunity or fle…
(written by Barry McKnight, Archives staff) With debate about Syrian refugees currently in the news, the Archives department recalls a prior period where Syrian refugees came t… https://archives.lacrosselibrary.org/blog/syrians-in-la-crosse/