The La Crosse Bridge War 1872 - 1876

Abstract

One of the functions of this paper is to tell the story of the La Crosse bridge war.· The other purpose is to try to give La Crosse a place in American railroading history. Railroads played an important part in U.S. history, ultimately dominating the lives of hundreds of people. This paper will try to show that La Crosse played a unique role in illustrating the power of railroads, which in later years would lead to more state and federal action regulating railroad discriminatory practices.