Recent Acquisitions
By Peggy Derrick
During the past year LCHS has taken in donations from two families with long histories in the county. The donation from one family includes personal items that reflect the influence of world history on local life, while the other is a donation of historic city documents which had been held in trust by the family for many years.
Germania Hall Donation
Wilma Viner has donated to LCHS a collection of documents that had been found in a time capsule in the cornerstone of Germania Hall, at the corner of Ferry and Fifth Streets, when it was razed in 1966 by her husband’s company. These include business cards and advertising for local businesses, an 1891 copy of the La Crosse Daily Press newspaper, and a booklet in German with the rules of the Deutscher Verein, or German Club, of La Crosse. Also in the donation is a small handwritten document in colloquial German, for which we have yet to find a translator. Titled “In Memoriam,” it includes local names, early La Crosse dates, and amounts of money, all of which lead us to think it may be a history of the German club in La Crosse, with acknowledgement of the donors for the building, Germania Hall.
Germania Hall was actually the second home of the several German societies which organized together to build it in 1891. The cornerstone was laid July 18, 1892. Building committee members were John Ulrich, C.H. Krehs, G.J. Pammel, and Joseph Schwalbe. The architects were Stolz & Schick of La Crosse, and Joseph Schwalbe and Son were the contractors.
The Deutscher Verein was originally made up of two combined groups, the Turn Verein and the Liederkranz. The purpose of the Turn Verein was to practice and compete in athletic and gymnastic events. A number of Turners’ organizations existed in Wisconsin as a result of the strong German immigrant influence in urban areas. The Liederkranz, originally called the La Crosse Maennerchor, was a singing society and in 1866 the first Saengerfest, or Song Fest, of Wisconsin was held in La Crosse, through the efforts of John Ulrich. More than 6000 singers from other cities participated. By the time these organizations combined and took residence in their new home, Germania Hall, their memberships included fewer German immigrants and more of their American-born descendents. The Hall was a social center for many activities, including a drama club and bowling. There were women’s clubs as well.
The Turners and the singers became less active in the years preceding World War I and eventually disappeared. By 1934 the group decided to sell their beloved Germania Hall because of the high costs of maintaining a facility. It was sold to the Pioneer Hall Labor Association of the CIO in August, 1937, and was used by the Committee for Industrial Organization for union offices and meetings, dinners and social events, boxing matches and labor education schools. The building was razed in early 1966 to make way for a new Fire Station at Fifth Ave. South and Market Street.
Booklet, printed in German, with the rules of“Deutscher Verein,” or German Club, of La Crosse, and an advertising pamphlet from a local cigar company, both found in the time capsule buried in the cornerstone of Germania Hall.
Funk Family Artifacts
Mary Patricia Maloney and Albert Funk Jr. were originally scheduled to be married in June of 1942. The bride’s mother was going to make her daughter’s wedding dress. Instead the ceremony at St. Mary’s church took place on January 3, 1942. It was 26 degrees below zero, and the bride’s flowers froze. With no time for the mother of the bride to make a gown, she and Mary had gone to Minneapolis to purchase one at Dayton’s department store.
Those of you who know your history have probably already guessed why the marriage date was moved up: Albert was shipping out in the U.S. Army, and they wanted to be married before he left. The bombing of Pearl Harbor had changed their lives, as it would change so many others. Albert went on to serve in the 12th Armored Division in Europe, while Mary lived with her parents. She told us that she had many friends in the same situation, so no one felt they were going through it alone. She also reminded us that she had it easy, compared to Albert and the other soldiers.
Albert and Mary went on to raise five children in La Crosse. Albert followed in the footsteps of his father as president and CEO of the La Crosse Rubber Mills, a large local industry founded by his grandfather, Michael Funk. He was a very active community member and family man, and passed away in 2006 at the age of 87. His widow Mary still lives in La Crosse.
LCHS now has in its collections Mary’s 1942 wedding dress and Albert’s army uniform, as mementoes of that era, as representations of world history seen through the lens of local history.
Albert Funk in his Army uniform and Mary Funk in her wedding dress, one year after their wedding. A camera accident had left them with almost no photos from their wedding day, so a year later Albert's parents suggested Mary try her wedding dress on at a family celebration for another photo.
