Immigrants & Migrants
Resources
—Germans—
Creator:
Richard J. Schild
Description:
It was the purpose of this study to trace the history of the gymnastic program in the La Crosse, Wisconsin, Turners, showing the background of the organization and the scope of its activities.
Author:
Robert R. Lorenz
Creator:
Robert R. Lorenz
Description:
A short history of the early German-American Methodist farming families who settled in the Town of Shelby, Chipmunk Coulee area of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, in the mid-nineteenth century. Family names include Hiekel, Kunerth, Bendel, Tietz and Starch.
Author:
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
Creator:
Richardson, Tamara K.
Description:
The goal of this project is to explore the personal history of the Altmann family in
relation to the common and yet unique experiences of other German immigrants.
With oral histories as the main source, my goal is to show how the history of the
Altmanns is the history of the modern family in America. This modern family is
the end result of ancestors moving to America for push-or-pull immigration reasons,
and adapting to the mainstreamed American culture. These full life interviews
will take the form of discussions of the past. Some of the topics to be covered
include the family members’ personal recollections and impressions of specific eras
(i.e. the Great Depression, WWII, the Vietnam War) as well as daily activities during
those eras.
Published as part of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Journal of Undergraduate Research, Volume 5 (2002)
Published as part of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Journal of Undergraduate Research, Volume 5 (2002)
Creator:
Steven Aune
Description:
Aune examines the use of language in immigrant churches in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Aune argues that cultural assimilation began in earnest when English became the dominant language in use over the native immigrant language. The author looks specifically at the two largest non-English native speaking immigrant groups in La Crosse in the 19th century; namely, the Germans and Norwegians.
Capstone project for History 490, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
Capstone project for History 490, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
Description:
Charles Conrad was a La Crosse area resident for his whole life, born in the late 1800s and growing up on a farm just outside of the city. In his interview, he discusses subjects like: his ancestry, Indigenous peoples, education, family life, working at a saw mill and grocery store, religion, movie theaters, the Red light district, Prohibition, clamming, the Klu Klux Klan (KKK), Black families, racism, early doctors and home remedies, and the Great Depression.
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Author:
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Oral History Program
Description:
Edwin Dohlby begins this interview discussing his genealogy, family life, and relationship with his mostly absent father. His mother was a midwife and he left school early to work various jobs to support his family (butchering, grocery, auto parts factory). He touches on many social and cultural topics in La Crosse history, including but not limited to: North Side and South Side, taverns and beer, recreation, area rivers, La Crosse Rubber Mills, Auto-Lite, Red-light District, the railroad industry, Prohibition, La Crosse Rubber Mills, dance halls and theaters, dating, local politics and business, anti-German discrimination, Wisconsin Progressive Movement and Robert LaFollette, the Great Depression, and the La Crosse River Marsh.
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Author:
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Oral History Program
Description:
Haiden discusses growing up in a German immigrant family in La Crosse, Wisconsin. He discusses family life, work life, and the development of La Crosse. He details his work in the railroad industry, mentioning several companies operating routes through La Crosse. He also describes the downtown district, including the breweries that operated there.
Author:
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Oral History Program
Description:
Henry Norcross (b. 1899) describes his family background and life on French Island. Topics include but are not limited to: German ancestry, festivals, Milwaukee Railroad, farming, French Island and La Crosse tensions, education, winter, drowning accidents, diseases and quarantine (mumps, measles, chicken pox), Frank Powell and Buffalo Bill Cody, circus, summer fairs, Mary Hauck (doctor), early electric cars, Dr. McLoone and Bessie Moore murders, home remedies, Rubber Mills, railroad engineer, anti-German propaganda during WWI, Prohibition, bootleggers, tobacco usage, Great Depression, unemployment, being member of Ku Klux Klan (KKK) (audio cuts out here in the middle of his story), Lodge 754, union strikes and involvement, anti-Black racism and his perceptions of white working-class discrimination.
Content warning: this interview contains racist ideas and language.
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Description:
Hoeschler touches on many subjects, but mainly focuses on his family history and his professional career. He also spends quite a bit of time talking about his uncle, Frank Hoeschler, who was a known dentist and developer in La Crosse.
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Author:
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Oral History Program
Description:
John P. Gilbertson begins his interview by discussing his Norwegian family history. His interview largely focuses on La Crosse social life and recreation, as well as his career as a letter carrier. Topics include but are not limited to: saw mills, railroads, Coon Valley, family working-class occupations, the Great Depression, history of the La Crosse Post Office, steamboats, La Crosse Inter-State Fair, farm technology, newspaper and press industry, education in La Crosse, Wisconsin Business University, the circus, segregation from Ho-Chunk community and community racism, Bartl Brewery, anti-Black racism and interracial marriage, river and lumber industries, Goosetown, gambling houses and City policies, anti-German discrimination, WWI, automobiles, federal government, development of the La Crosse Normal School (now UW-L), Hoeschler family, medical history, Adolf Gundersen, early Ho-Chunk community members, early Black American community members, La Crosse Historical Society, Nathan Myrick, local politics, Wisconsin Progressive Movement, corruption in La Crosse Police Department, personal sentiments towards communities with different identities than his own (Indigenous, Black American, and Jewish).
Note: This interview has sections of poor audio quality.
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Note: This interview has sections of poor audio quality.
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Author:
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Oral History Program
Description:
Pat Seubert (b. 1936) discusses her life in La Crosse, Wisconsin. She focuses on family and neighborhood life and details recreation activities and social life. She also describes changes in society and politics during her lifetime. Topics includ but are not limited to: childhood home, La Crosse neighborhoods, 20th century changing technologies (dishwasher, washing machine), household roles, husband's employment, raising a family, clothing fads, leisure activities, children's extracurricular activities and music tastes, fraternal and social organizations, courtships and friendships, treatment of women (1940s-1970s), relationship and marriage (married 1958), vacations and first car, WWII (homefront), Communism, Korean War, nursing homes and funerals, religious importance, major societal changes (1945-1960s), family ethnicities, and racial and ethnic tensions in La Crosse. Content warning: this interview does contain racist, anti-Black language.
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Author:
University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Oral History Program
Description:
In this interview, Paul Cuta and Alberta (Cuta) Gund primarily discuss German and Czech culture during the early 20th century in La Crosse. Topics include but are not limited to: the family home (1016 Farnam Street), Bohemian (Czech) traditional names, Catholicism, parental roles, cigar making, commercial fishing, wooden boat building, Funke's Candy Company, gardens and growing vegetables, paternal grandparents, life in the family home, Hood-Powell Park neighborhood, religious divisions in town; German-Lutheran, German-Catholics, Bohemian-Catholics, Irish-Catholics, Holy Trinity Parochial School, activities at schools, fundraisers, sports, dancing, traditional Bohemian (Czech) food, World War II, La Crosse Tribune, fashion, war rations, street cars, Protestant and Catholic neighborhood relationships, The Strand Theater, recreation activities, school yard games, home remedies, Powells Park, Lapitz Grocery Store, shoe stores and cobblers, home funerals, Hammes Grocery Store, Bruha Selrite Grocery Store, Aboto's Confectionary, bicycling in 1940s, communications during Korean War, home-brew alcohol served in Bohemian Hall, Humms Bakery, Tabbert's Dry Goods Store, taverns, gasoline industry, Tomicek Car Service, financial loans, soap rations during WWII, Baum's Butcher Shop, Shimshack's Shoe Repair and Tavern, Not Your Uncle's Tavern, and the Prohibition era.
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