The name of La Crosse is of pure French orgin. When the French explorers and traders ascended the Mississippi River...., they saw the Indians playing a game on the prairie that stretched two miles eastward from the bluffs. This was a ball game played with a long handed racquet that reminded the French of their tennis game which they called "la crosse". (This name had its orgin in the fact that the racquet resembled a bishop's crozier. p. 7 of La Crosse county historical sketches, series 2.)

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La Crosse County, Wisconsin

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[Source: Card file at the WHS Library reference desk]