Welcome to Onalaska ...
The city of Onalaska is located in La Crosse County<1>.
The location of Onalaska has been provided by the Geographic Names Information System (ie- the GNIS).<2>
While we don't have a date for the founding of Onalaska, you might consider that their post office opened in 1854.
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Onalaska has a population of 18,956 people<3> (see below for details).
Onalaska is 710 feet [216 m] above sea level.<4>.
Time Zone: Onalaska lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Onalaska lies within the (608) area code.
Websites for Onalaska ...
Official Website: www.ci.onalaska.wi.us/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Onalaska had an population of 18,956 people. This is an increase of 6.88% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 27.74% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Onalaska had a population of 17,736 people (or 15.47% of the total population of La Crosse County). This makes Onalaska the county's 2nd most populous community.
The population of Onalaska represents 0.31% of the population of Wisconsin (which has 5,686,986 people), making it the state's 45th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 17,736 people, the population of Onalaska increased 19.52% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 14,839 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Onalaska.
Communities Also Named Onalaska ...
Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 3 communities that are also named Onalaska - they are located in Arkansas, Texas and Washington.
For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Onalaska.
Communities near Onalaska ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Onalaska.
- West Salem
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for West Salem
- West Salem is located in La Crosse County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,013 people
- Trempealeau
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Trempealeau have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Trempealeau
- Trempealeau is located in Trempealeau County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,663 people
- Galesville
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the northwest)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Galesville
- Galesville is located in Trempealeau County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,602 people
- Bangor
(11 miles [17.7 km] to the east) - Houston
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Houston have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Houston
- Houston is located in Houston County (MN)
- Population from the 2020 Census: 972 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Houston <5>
- Stoddard
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Stoddard
- Stoddard is located in Vernon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 831 people
- Coon Valley
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Coon Valley have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Coon Valley
- Coon Valley is located in Vernon County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 782 people
- Rockland
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the east)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rockland
- Rockland is located in La Crosse County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 710 people
- Hokah
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hokah have been provided by the GNIS.<2> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hokah
- Hokah is located in Houston County (MN)
- Population from the 2020 Census: 548 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hokah <5>
- Ettrick
(19 miles [30.6 km] to the north)
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Onalaska. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Onalaska.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Onalaska. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Onalaska.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Onalaska. See our Newspapers Page for Onalaska.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Onalaska ...
Looking for more information about Onalaska? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
While we are unaware of a Tourism page that is specific to Onalaska, there are neighboring communities that do have Tourism pages. A map of those communities can be found with our TripAdvisor Page for Onalaska.
Adding Onalaska to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Onalaska in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Onalaska was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<6>
From that list, the Onalaska post office opened in 1854.
We also found Onalaska in the book titled List of Post Offices in the United States (1870).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Onalaska.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Onalaska: www.ci.onalaska.wi.us/
The official website for La Crosse County: www.co.la-crosse.wi.us/
The official website for State of Wisconsin: https://www.wisconsin.gov/
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Wisconsin's counties, including La Crosse, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <3> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Onalaska. |
| <4> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Onalaska - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <5> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |
| <6> | A copy of their list with background information can be found at: https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/ |