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Yesterday in La Crosse

A long career in Congress begins in 1931

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Gardner Withrow of La Crosse was a former railroad man when he first went to Congress in 1931.  Withrow served four terms in the House as a Republican or Progressive before losing his seat in 1938.  He also lost the next two elections, but returned to Congress in 1948, and served six more terms until retiring in 1960.

A multiple murder in southeastern Wisconsin made news around the state in ’31.  A farmer and three children at Burlington, Wisconsin were shot to death by a farmhand named Frank Gray.  A newspaper report said Gray ran amuck with a shotgun, and had complained about “too many cows to milk.”

Odin Oyen died in 1931.  Oyen was a designer who ran a company at 5th and Main in La Crosse.  The firm closed after his death.  Years later, it was the headquarters for Soell’s Liquor, and when Soell’s closed, the Oyen building was restored to its old look and the Odin Gallery opened there.  Odin Oyen and Gardner Withrow are both buried in La Crosse’s Oak Grove Cemetery.

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.

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