History
4
Because of the fertile soil and lush woodlands along the river shores, the Winnebago Indians settled in this area in 1772. Sixty years later they ceded these lands to the U.S. Government. In 1842, Nathan Myrick, the first white settler in La Crosse, built his log cabin and trading post on this site. It was designated a public boat landing in 1851 and became the most strategic Mississippi River port on the western boundary of Wisconsin. Boats traveling north and south docked here, and wagons traveling west crossed the river on ferries from this place, helping La Crosse become known as the Gateway City. The Indians made this a neutral ground and met on the prairie east of here only in peace, where they competed in athletic contests; their most notable game was la crosse, from which the city derived its name. In 1903 the city named the park for Thomas H. Spence, a pioneer businessman and civic leader who gave this land to the people.
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La Crosse, Wisconsin · United States
