Carol Mullen
Catalog Number: 1983.097.01
Winter Carnival was a major event in La Crosse in the early 1920s, and this woolen winter outfit worn by Herbert Raifsnider of La Crosse Rubber Mills was a part of it.
The four day January festival, held in 1921 and 1922, included parades with floats and marching bands, balls, horse races, fireworks, and a king and queen with their own ice palace in Riverside Park. Winter sports exhibitions and contests featured skating, ice hockey, tobogganing, ice racing, and ski jumping.
Major components of the parades were “marching clubs” of employees from local businesses and civil organizations, outfitted in matching costumes. A souvenir booklet from 1922 included photos of employees from local firms like Leithold’s, The State Bank, Doerflinger’s, Tausche Hardware, Salzer Seed, Funke Candy, Moen Photo Service, and Wisconsin Pearl Button, to name a few.
Almost 400 La Crosse Rubber Mills employees marched in the Winter Carnival parade on January 26, 1922. They wore red and white ensembles made especially for Winter Carnival by La Crosse Star Knitting Company. Star Knitting made many of the outfits worn by athletes and marchers in the parades, and participated themselves.
The Rubber Mills woolen ensembles were designed for either men or women. They consisted of a sweater with a La Crosse Rubber Mills logo, red knickers, white leggings, and a white cap with a red pompon.
The company logo featured a Native American in profile with a full feather headdress; this same logo appeared on their products and packaging, and is a relic of a time when popular representations of native tribes were being used by many companies.
Rubber Mills marchers were followed by a float in the shape of a rubber overshoe. The 1922 Rubber Mills queen was enthroned near the top of the heel.
Though enormously successful, La Crosse’s Winter Carnival didn’t continue past 1922. Perhaps the huge amount of work and the expense involved were too much to manage.
Herbert Raifsnider and his wife Anna were long-time Rubber Mills employees. In 1958 the company honored the Raifsniders, by then retired, for over 81 years of combined service.
Although La Crosse no longer hosts Winter Carnival, the city still has winter events to celebrate.
This article was originally published in the La Crosse Tribune on January 25, 2020.
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