Bicentennial celebrations, res life changes, a gymnastics juggernaut — and more campus happenings 50 years ago

Bicentennial celebrations, res life changes, a gymnastics juggernaut - and more campus happenings 50 years ago

By Brad Quarberg, emeritus distinguished university relations specialist

At UW-La Crosse, "The Spirit of '76" was about much more than celebrating the nation's bicentennial on campus.

While the city of La Crosse reveled in being named the nation's top small city, students were marking newly found freedoms in campus residence halls (including in-room phones) along with a second-consecutive men's gymnastics national championship.

Take a look back at those and other campus happenings from 1976, 50 years ago.

Private phones, coed halls come to res life

For students living in residence halls, having a phone in their room became a convenience that came at a cost.

Yet, residents in more than three-quarters of the 192 rooms in Angell Hall paid the one-time $14 connection charge, in addition to the monthly $6.45 local service charge, with long distance often ringing up to $90 monthly for those with the gift of gab.

The La Crosse Telephone Co. boasted that connection and local charges were "the lowest rates available in the state." A La Crosse yearbook '77 article featuring Angell Hall noted that "the lack of privacy, the possibility of a long wait and the increased cost when using change for a long-distance call are all inconveniences in using the floor phone as compared to a private room phone."

Other on-campus housing changes included more coed residence halls in fall 1976, with Laux Hall touting "Co-Ed Life" as its theme, boasting two floors of women and men each. Wentz, the academic dorm with longer quiet hours, welcomed men to the first floor.

Additionally, Baird and Trowbridge halls started experimenting with 24-hour visitation. The change came after the Board of Regents altered a policy to allow campuses to set hours with chancellor approval.

The Board first opened the door to residence visitation in 1970, allowing visits on Sunday afternoons only. The following year, Saturdays were added to the extended visitation. In successive years, guest registration was eliminated and more visitation hours were added until the 24-hour changes.

A dance for the hiss-tory books

Homecoming was alive and well on campus in 1976, and students even attempted to break a Guiness World Record.

The Marching Chiefs, as they were called then, led more than 800 people in a "snake dance" line that slithered through campus but fell well short of the 3,376 needed to top a Bowling Green State University record. La Crosse Mayor Pat Zielke and Chancellor Kenneth Lindner verified the count on the mall near Murphy Library.

While a yearbook article pledged that students would "Try again next year!" UWL was never able to set the record, and the snake dance tradition molted by the end of the decade.

See pages 86 and 87 of the 1977 yearbook.

It was Greek to them

Hundreds of students took part in Greek life on campus in the mid-70s.

The '77 La Crosse yearbook dedicated more than 30 pages to the 10 active Greek organizations, detailing everything from pledging to campus competition. The pages also included headshots of the 1976-77 group members, along with activities they took part in, including Songfest, Winter Carnival, Beta variety and more.

See pages 56-85 of the 1977 yearbook.

A Ford and a peanut farmer

Wisconsin was a hot spot for the 1976 presidential primary, back when the state's primary consistently impacted the nation's top race.

Fresh off the Watergate scandal, the state's Republican voters supported President Gerald Ford over California Gov. Ronald Reagan.

On the Democratic ticket, national upstart and former Georgia Gov. Jimmy Carter outpolled Arizona U.S. Rep. Morris Udall. The surprise victory gave the former peanut farmer a strong enough coalition to secure him the Democratic nomination and, eventually, a place in the White House.

See pages 46 and 47 of the 1976 yearbook.

More hardware for men's gymnastics

Four national individual titles led the men's gymnastics team to its second consecutive NAIA championship. (The team would go on to win its third and final title in 1977.)

Throughout the season, the team competed in numerous opens across the region, claiming wins over Big Ten teams and other higher-division colleges.

See pages 102 and 103 of the 1976 yearbook.

A Bicentennial celebration

UWL got into the Spirit of '76 for the nation's 200 birthday.

The University Bicentennial Committee championed a variety of campus projects to mark the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Among them:

• A display of artifacts, mementos and other nostalgic items gathered by an Alumni Association committee.
• A radio series airing on the young campus station, WLSU.
• A 30-minute film, "La Crosse - A River City," on the history of La Crosse and the area.
• Bicentennial Sketches, a series of articles on local history by university and area citizens.
• One-minute TV spots featuring local history for broadcast on the local commercial station.
• Dedication of La Crosse's Harry J. Senior Citizens Center with activities planned by a music recreation class.

Only in La Crosse: Scholarship honors bartender

He served up more than beer at the Rustic Inn downtown La Crosse.

Ray George, owner-operator of the downtown bar, was a friend, adviser, employer, confidante and part-time parent to thousands of UWL students over the years.

In 1976, a group of Ray's "kids" honored him through a special scholarship: the Ray George Scholarship, awarded annually to Greek organization members on campus. George was "very enthusiastic, in fact thrilled by the idea," the yearbook reported at the time.

The scholarship, which is still awarded, gained national attention in the 1991 edition of U.S. News & World Report's "Best Colleges" publication.

See page 5 of the fall 1976 Alumnus.

Other highlights

America's Top Small City

La Crosse - touting the World's Largest Six Pack, Third Street and Trane Co. - earned the honor following an All-American City nod in 1966.

See pages 28 and 29 of the 1976 yearbook.

On the cover of Redbook magazine

Physical education instructor Maurita Robarge landed on the cover of "Redbook," a popular national magazine for young women, where she shared exercises tips designed to help readers "feel great!"

Robarge advised, "The way a woman's body performs is essential to her success instead of failure. With a positive self-image, baby, the work is yours."

See the spring 1976 Alumnus.

Bringing space down to earth

Physics Department faculty member Bob Allen was featured in the '76 La Crosseyearbook in his sixth year of teaching astronomy and directing area's largest planetarium on campus.

The planetarium closed in December 2025 - while still under Allen's direction - to make way for the demolition of Cowley Hall and the completion of the Prairie Springs Science Center.

See page 221 of the 1976 yearbook.

More than tour guides

The 1976-77 academic year marked the introduction of the UWL Vanguards, a group based in the Admissions Office specializing in tours, recruitment and public relations.

The UWL Vanguards would go on to set a standard for colleges throughout the region, excelling in recruitment not only by offering tours to prospective students, but by sharing their advice and expertise through all stages of the admissions process.

See page 224 of the 1977 yearbook.