When Bill Neumeister inherited his father 's savings in about 1894, he decided that he wanted to turn La Crosse into the horse racing capital of America. He bought land beneath a bluff three miles from downtown, put in a state-of-the-art 1-mile oval track and enticed racing men around the country with purses totaling $25,000.

The following summer, from July 8 to 13, more than 10,000 people from around the country came to Wisconsin for the great races. Special trains brought fans to the city and a new street-car extension carried them to the track, which included a three-block-long grandstand, stalls for hundreds of thoroughbred horses, and telegraph lines to instantly notify the press of winners.

The best horses in the nation raced, and downtown La Crosse filled up with gamblers and spendthrifts. Old-timers recalled it "was the biggest thing La Crosse ever saw. "

The city fathers were not pleased, though, by the importation of vice on such a grand scale.

This may be part of the reason why the following year, when Neumeister overextended himself financially, fewer race fans showed up -- so few, in fact,

that he could not meet his operating expenses or pay off the winners. He only escaped from whip-touting horsemen by fleeing the city.

So ended La Crosse 's brief but glorious stint as America 's horse-racing Mecca. Neumeister spent the rest of his days in and out of psychiatric institutions.

-- Wisconsin Historical Society
www.wisconsinhistory.org

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