Though every city in the U.S. has a distinctly American flavor, so many metropolitan areas display distinct signs of the immigrant populations that melded together to make the cities we know and love today. From Miami's Little Havana to New York City's Chinatown and Los Angeles' Little Italy, cultural enclaves continue to thrive in modern metropolitan areas and help build colorful and diverse communities.
Many cultural and ethnic enclaves have become destinations for locals and tourists alike, but these visitors bring with them a mixed bag of consequences. On one hand, increased foot traffic allows small businesses and restaurants more opportunities for business, ushering in much-appreciated cash flow. On the other hand, rising demand for goods and services can cause prices to rise, hiking up the cost of living and potentially pushing poorer individuals and families out of the community.
The gentrification of ethnic enclaves is not new. The term "gentrification" was coined by Ruth Glass in the 1960s to describe the displacement of working class folks in London, but the first examples of gentrification can be traced back to the 18th century when wealthy landowners, or the "gentry," began buying out small farmers who were struggling to accumulate the capital necessary to operate in England.
Today, ethnic enclaves continue to thrive despite the looming threats of gentrification and economic impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic. As one step towards understanding the history of these enclaves, Stacker compiled a list of the largest sources of immigrants in La Crosse in 1900 by transcribing a previously untranscribed dataset from the U.S. Census Bureau. Table 35 of the Twelfth Census details the immigrant population of every city in the U.S. with at least 25,000 inhabitants as of the turn of the last century.
Read on to find out more about the historical immigrant community in your home city or explore the data on your own on our site, GitHub, or data.world.
You may also like: La Crosse's 2025 housing market year in review
1 / 29
#1. Germany
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 3,130
- Percent of foreign born residents: 43.34%
National
- Number of residents: 2,669,164
- Percent of foreign born residents: 25.52%
- #1 most common country of origin
2 / 29
#2. Norway
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 2,028
- Percent of foreign born residents: 28.08%
National
- Number of residents: 338,426
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.24%
- #9 most common country of origin
3 / 29
#3. Bohemia
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 477
- Percent of foreign born residents: 6.60%
National
- Number of residents: 156,999
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.50%
- #12 most common country of origin
4 / 29
#4. Canada
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 303
- Percent of foreign born residents: 4.20%
National
- Number of residents: 1,183,225
- Percent of foreign born residents: 11.31%
- #3 most common country of origin
6 / 29
#6. Poland
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 195
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.70%
National
- Number of residents: 383,595
- Percent of foreign born residents: 3.67%
- #8 most common country of origin
7 / 29
#7. Switzerland
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 181
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.51%
National
- Number of residents: 115,959
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.11%
- #15 most common country of origin
8 / 29
#8. England
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 165
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.28%
National
- Number of residents: 843,491
- Percent of foreign born residents: 8.06%
- #4 most common country of origin
9 / 29
#9. Sweden
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 141
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.95%
National
- Number of residents: 574,625
- Percent of foreign born residents: 5.49%
- #5 most common country of origin
11 / 29
#11. Denmark
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 64
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.89%
National
- Number of residents: 154,616
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.48%
- #13 most common country of origin
12 / 29
#12. Scotland
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 58
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.80%
National
- Number of residents: 234,699
- Percent of foreign born residents: 2.24%
- #11 most common country of origin
13 / 29
#13. Russia
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 48
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.66%
National
- Number of residents: 424,372
- Percent of foreign born residents: 4.06%
- #7 most common country of origin
14 / 29
#14. France
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 31
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.43%
National
- Number of residents: 104,534
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.00%
- #18 most common country of origin
15 / 29
#15. Turkey
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 23
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.32%
National
- Number of residents: 9,949
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.10%
- #30 most common country of origin
You may also like: How much house does $500,000 buy you in La Crosse?
16 / 29
#16. Wales
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 22
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.30%
National
- Number of residents: 93,744
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.90%
- #20 most common country of origin
17 / 29
#17. Holland
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 20
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.28%
National
- Number of residents: 105,098
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.00%
- #17 most common country of origin
18 / 29
#18. Luxemburg
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 15
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.21%
National
- Number of residents: 3,049
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.03%
- #37 most common country of origin
19 / 29
#19. Asia (except China, Japan, and India)
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 12
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.17%
National
- Number of residents: 11,928
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.11%
- #27 most common country of origin
20 / 29
#20. Italy
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 7
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.10%
National
- Number of residents: 484,703
- Percent of foreign born residents: 4.63%
- #6 most common country of origin
You may also like: Car insurance rates in La Crosse October 2025
21 / 29
#21. Hungary
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 7
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.10%
National
- Number of residents: 145,815
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.39%
- #14 most common country of origin
22 / 29
#22. Cuba
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 5
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.07%
National
- Number of residents: 11,159
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.11%
- #28 most common country of origin
23 / 29
#23. Born at sea
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 3
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.04%
National
- Number of residents: 8,310
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.08%
- #32 most common country of origin
24 / 29
#24. Africa
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 3
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.04%
National
- Number of residents: 2,577
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.02%
- #40 most common country of origin
25 / 29
#25. West Indies (except Cuba and Puerto Rico)
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.01%
National
- Number of residents: 14,468
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.14%
- #26 most common country of origin
You may also like: Highest-rated Chinese restaurants in La Crosse
26 / 29
#26. India
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.01%
National
- Number of residents: 2,069
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.02%
- #42 most common country of origin
27 / 29
#27. China
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.01%
National
- Number of residents: 106,659
- Percent of foreign born residents: 1.02%
- #16 most common country of origin
28 / 29
#28. Central America
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.01%
National
- Number of residents: 3,911
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.04%
- #36 most common country of origin
29 / 29
#29. Belgium
La Crosse, Wisconsin
- Number of residents: 1
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.01%
National
- Number of residents: 29,848
- Percent of foreign born residents: 0.29%
- #24 most common country of origin
