Onalaska: Present and Past

Onalaska: Present and Past. . , The North Side of Main Street , This historic photo, circa 1905, shows the post office, a hardware store, a grocery store with offices for a dentist and a physician located upstairs, and another grocery store in the distance. Note the wooden water trough for horses positioned in front of the post office. Originally, Onalaska's west-to-east streets were designated by letters of the alphabet, with Main Street known as "J" Street., Onalaska State Bank , The Onalaska State Bank, 201 Main Street, received its charter from the State Banking Commission in May of 1912. The bank opened in this new brick building across the street with a mere $17,035 in resources. The bank didn't recover from the Great Depression and closed in 1933. The building was then used as the Onalaska Post Office from 1937 to 1957, after which it served at various times as a sporting goods store, real estate office, day care, gift shop, restaurant and wine bar., In February, 1929, the bank was robbed at gunpoint of almost $2,000 in cash by an 18 year old La Crosse resident who was apprehended a few days later in Eveleth, Minnesota. Most of the stolen "loot" was recovered., "Meet Ya at the Bubbler" , This public drinking fountain (the "bubbler") was installed by the city in 1895 on the SE corner of 2nd Ave S. and Main St.(which is on the corner across the street from where you are standing). It cost $60 and was manufactured by the Torrence and Son Foundry of La Crosse, WI, the same foundry that manufactured the city's "stand pipe" or water tower. The original fountain had a cast iron eagle on top which was later removed. When 2nd Ave was widened in the 1970s the drinking fountain was first moved to a wayside on Hwy 35 N along Lake Onalaska, then later moved to its present location at the Onalaska Library where local historians Nancy Tolvstad and her daughter Carol stand beside it. It was a popular gathering place for the youth for 70 years or more., There are two replicas of the original drinking fountain, one in front of City Hall at 415 Main St. and the other at the SW corner of 3rd Ave. S and Main St., South Side of the 200 Block of Main Street - Circa 1920s, Livery Stable , Located on the southwest corner of 3rd Ave. S. and Main St., the Livery Stable provided horses and buggies for rent and a place for visitors to board their horses. This building later became Wooden's Garage, an auto repair business., The Crystal Theatre , The Crystal Theatre was built in 1913 at 302 Main Street, and has been occupied continuously since then. Originally a theater for silent movies, Floyde Johnson Sias, daughter of the owner, would play appropriate piano music to accompany the action on the silent screen. Local recitals, school plays, graduation exercises and cultural events were also held on the theatre's stage., In 1936, the building was converted to a dairy for the production of milk and ice cream products. Later, it became a restaurant and ice cream shop known as the "Dairy Bar". Second floor apartments were added in the 1970s, Meat Market/Butcher Shop , This store ( with the awning in front ) provided fresh meat products to local residents., Aldrich's Drug Store , This business was opened in 1888 by Wilbur Aldrich and remained a family run drugstore and soda fountain for over 60 years. Tom Monsoor bought the business in 1952 and he and his family operated it for another 46 years, closing it in 1998., Mercantile Store , A general merchandise store, later known as the Sias building, housed a number of businesses over the years. Now the site of Dash Park., Western Spinning Mills , Constructed in 1901, this three story brick building was located on the west side of 2nd Avenue just south of Main Street. It stood where the Great River Landing is today. The company used powered looms to produce bolts of wool and cotton cloth. The building burned in 1917, was rebuilt and the business operated until the late 1930s., The Jewel Tea Company took over the building in 1938 and used it as a warehouse and distribution center for its household products. Various small businesses used space in the building until it was torn down to make room for today's Great River Landing., Breaking Rock on Main Street , In this 1914 photo some Onalaska businessmen and citizens are breaking up the old stone pavement in the 200 block of Main Street (directly across from where you are standing). Since a La Crosse County road crew was already in town repaving two blocks of 2nd Avenue, the citizens successfully convinced them to repave this one block of Main Street with newly crushed rock., The Chicago and North Western Railroad ( C&NW ) , The C&NW RR laid its tracks through Onalaska in the early 1870s. In this photo, circa 1920, you see the station master and passengers awaiting the southbound steam locomotive passenger train coming into Onalaska. This depot was located to your right where the Great River Landing parking lot is today. Numerous freight and passenger trains passed through town every day. Six passenger trains per day stopped to discharge and load riders and mail. The train schedule and ticket prices from 1921 are shown here. ( Also shown is the time table for the electric trolley car to La Crosse)., In the 1940s and early 50s Onalaska High School basketball players, students and parents could ride a special passenger car to Trempealeau High School or Galesville High School to watch the games and return by train later in the evening., The C&NW RR passenger operations ceased in Onalaska in 1963. The depot was razed in 1983. The State of Wisconsin bought the RR right-of-way and converted it to a pedestrian and bicycle trail. Today the Great River Trail covers about 23 miles between Onalaska and Trempealeau/Marshland through the scenic route that once saw steam and later diesel locomotives., Vern Dale , In 1919, Vern Dale (1900-1976) opened a car repair shop and gas station on 2nd Ave. S. between Irvin and Hickory streets. In 1936, he trademarked a gun-cleaning lubricant (Gun Slick), which led to the establishment of the Outer's Laboratories factory on Brice Prairie. Later, he was involved with the establishment of Metallic's Inc., a name plate and decal manufacturer also located on Brice Prairie. Notably, Vern Dale owned a considerable amount of acreage on the Prairie, where he raised horses and cattle., After his death in 1976, a trust was established which annually grants money to 31 designated local charities. In recent years, over a million dollars per year has been granted., The Electric Trolley Car , This photo, circa 1920, looking south on 2nd Ave, shows the electrically powered street railway car which ran on steel rails from the corner of 2nd Ave and Main Street in Onalaska to the corner of Loomis and Livingston Streets in North La Crosse. The trip was about 2 miles and took about 15 minutes., At the North La Crosse terminus passengers could board another trolley to take them into downtown La Crosse. The Onalaska trolley ran every half hour from 6 am to midnight seven days per week. This trolley was in operation from about 1902 to 1930. After it ended a bus service replaced it., Also shown in the photo are several hotels and saloons on the east side of 2nd Ave., Archaeology Discoveries Under Second Ave. South , During the spring and summer of 2012, the Mississippi Valley Archaeology Center at UW-La Crosse conducted an extensive exploration of a five block long segment of Second Ave. S (starting in front of you and going downhill to your right) during the reconstruction of State Highway 35. In all, more than six hundred features were found, all buried three or more feet below the surface. Human remains were encountered in over thirty locations. This probable Oneota village site dates to about A.D. 1300 - 1400. The Oneota is the name archaeologists have given to the last prehistoric culture (1150-1700) of the upper midwest. The Oneota lived in villages along streams and tributaries of the upper Mississippi River., Skogen's IGA , In 1946, Paul Skogen and his wife Jane opened a small IGA grocery store on the northeast corner of 2nd Avenue South and Hickory Street, two blocks south of where you are standing. With the help of their sons Tom, David, and Gary, the family ran the small store, which was attached to their home., David and Gary later took over the business and expanded it to include more IGA stores. Eventually David and his wife Barbara opened Festival Foods, a chain of grocery stores which now boasts 42 locations throughout Wisconsin., Beyond their business success, Dave and Barb Skogen are deeply committed to giving back. Through their generous philanthropic efforts, they have supported organizations such as the YMCA, United Way, Boys and Girls Clubs, UW-La Crosse, Viterbo University, La Crosse area hospitals, the Omni Center, and more., Dash-Park, directly across the street, stands as another testament to their ongoing dedication to the City of Onalaska., Drone Photo Courtesy of Elevate Media Group, Onalaska, WI , Display Constructed by Graphic Image, LLC, Fountain City, WI