Religious Organizations and Issues
Autobiography : A Translation from the Diary of John Adam Salzer by Emma Salzer Hallauer (Springfield, Mo. : Emma Salzer Hallauer?), 1925.
John Adam Salzer, an emigrant from Wuerttemberg, Germany, became a Methodist preacher in the early history of La Crosse County and eventually founded the Salzer Seed Company. In about 1869 Salzer recorded his remembrances of his life up to that time in his native German language. In 1925, his daughter Emma Salzer Hallauer published this small booklet as a translation of his diary and added a page to fill out the rest of her father's life.
A Brief Sketch of La Crosse, Wisc'n Showing the Location of the Place, its Surrounding Scenery, Commercial Advantages, Early History, and the Social, Moral, Literary, and Religious Character of the Inhabitants; and Various Other Interesting Items / Spencer Carr. La Crosse, W. C. Rogers, 1854.
This pamphlet of 28 pages contains a brief history of La Crosse, written in 1854 by a La Crosse clergyman, three years after La Crosse County had been organized in the hopes of attracting more residents and industry. Of special interest are the three registers containing the names, birth places, religious affiliations and occupations of all heads of households and single men and women in La Crosse in 1854.
The Catholic History of La Crosse, Wis: In Two Chapters / Crane, Florence. La Crosse, Wis. : F. Crane, 1904, 32 p.
This work provides both a history of Catholics and Catholic institutions in La Crosse from 1868-1904. It is illustrated with high-quality photographs including Catholic schools, churches, and orphan homes, St. Rose Convent, St. Francis Hospital, and portraits of the priests and bishops that served the Diocese of La Crosse.
The
Centennial History of St. Mary's Church, 1854-1954 (La Crosse, Wis. : s.n.), 1954?
Cover Title: St. Mary's Centenary, 100
This illustrated booklet is a history of the first Catholic church in La Crosse, St. Mary's Church. Services were conducted in the English language, and the parish was known for its Irish, French and German roots. Included in the history is the story of St. Mary's School, priests and sisters from St. Mary's and a list of early baptisms and marriages performed at the church. The new Cathedral of St. Joseph the Workman was dedicated in 1962 and soon after St. Mary's was closed. The church building at 319 South 7th Street (7th & Cameron streets) constructed in 1874-75 was razed in 1963.
Den Triumferende Fryd, 1891
Free Thought Miscellany, 1887
A Half Century of Wheat and Tares in Bostwick Valley/James Tauscher (Wisconsin: J. Tauscher), 1976.
A 28 page senior church history paper about secularism and the German Freethinkers organization of Barre Mills and the Bostwick Valley area of La Crosse County, Wisconsin.
History of La Crosse County, Wisconsin 1881/ Butterfield, Consul Willshire. Chicago : Western Historical Co., 1881, 862 p
Churches-This 862 page tome is the preeminent 19th century history of the La Crosse area. It begins with a general overview of the history of Wisconsin but then begins a detailed account of the history of both the city and county of La Crosse including its villages and towns as well as biographical sketches of prominent citizens. It is illustrated with black and white woodcuts. A name index to this volume was compiled in 1977 by Murphy Library and this index is included.
History Repeats Itself, Ten Commandments Controversy
The Ten Commandments Monument was donated to the city and dedicated in Cameron Park in conjunction with a state Eagles Club convention held in La Crosse in 1965. Seen as a religious symbol on public property, a lawsuit in 1985 sparked a court battle between the Freedom From Religion Foundation, led by Anne Gaylor, and the city. The case was dismissed in 1988. The issue resurfaced in 2001 with more local citizen support, and the city sold the small parcel of land where the monument stands to the Eagles Club in 2002.
La Crosse Churches, 1852-1900 / Doering, Anita Taylor
A list of churches in the city of La Crosse from 1852-1900 to help genealogists and local historians narrow down the possibilities of where someone may have attended a church service, depending on their place of residence (north or south side), native language and denomination.
La Crosse County Historical Sketches, 1931-1955
Jewish Settlers of La Crosse to 1880 / H.J. Hirshheimer
Early Customs and Activities of La Crosse Churches / Geneve Caldwell
Congregational and Presbyterian Beginnings in La Crosse / Albert H. Sanford
The Mormons of Mormon Coulee / Albert H. Sanford
Beginnings of the Salzer Memorial Methodist Church / Emil J. Bernet
Memoirs of La Crosse County / Benjamin Bryant; 1907.
This work, along with History of La Crosse County, 1881, are the preeminent published sources for 19th century La Crosse history. Bryant’s Memoirs, as it is commonly called, is a wide-ranging work that covers the early history of La Crosse as well as the social, education, government, religious, and business institutions. The book is divided into 22 chapters and also includes brief histories of the smaller towns of La Crosse County. An alphabetical name index to Bryant’s Memoirs was prepared and digitized in 2004 and is available for searching at the “name index” button.
Church History - First Religious Meeting-Non-Orthodox Societies-Religious Sects Represented in 1854-Baptist Church, Organized 1851-First Church Building Erected-Later Baptist Churches-First Congregational Church-First Methodist Church-Later Methodist Churches- Catholic Churches St. Rosa's Convent-Episcopal Church-Lutheran Churches Jewish Congregation-Presbyterian Church-St. Paul's Universalist Church-German Evangelical Association- German Reformed Church-Adventist Church-Church of Christ, Scientist-Young Men's Christian Association-Young Women's Christian Association
Methodism in La Crosse from 1849 to 1904 (La Crosse, Wis.? : s.n.), 1904.
A short history of the Methodist Episcopal churches in La Crosse, Wisconsin, including First Methodist Episcopal Church (later known as Wesley United Methodist), Caledonia Street Methodist Church (later known as St. Luke's United Methodist), Onalaska Methodist Episcopal Church (later known as Onalaska United Methodist), First German Methodist Episcopal Church (later known as Salzer then Asbury United Methodist), Scandinavian Methodist Episcopal Church, West Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church (later known as Asbury United Methodist), Second German Methodist Episcopal Church, and some notes about the general conference. The booklet is also full of ads.
Souvenir of the Golden Jubilee of the Holy Trinity Congregation (La Crosse, Wis. : Holy Trinity Congregation), 1937
A history of the first 50 years of Holy Trinity Catholic Church, a congregation with German roots. The parish began in 1887 and was originally known as St. Nicholas. The church continues its work today in the same location.
