Biohazard and Pathogen Disinfection in Onalaska, WI

Onalaska is a city in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, lying immediately north of La Crosse on the Black River; it is the second-largest city in the county and a principal city of the La Crosse–Onalaska metropolitan area.

The original village was platted in 1851 by Thomas G. Rowe of New York and John C. Laird of Pennsylvania, and in its early days lumbering and related industries formed the basis of its economy.

According to local legend, the city's name comes from Thomas Campbell's 1799 poem 'The Pleasures of Hope,' which mentions 'Oonalaska's shore' — a reference to Unalaska Island in Alaska — and was a favorite of founder Thomas Rowe.

Onalaska is known as 'The Sunfish Capital of the World,' a nod to the fishing on Lake Onalaska at its western edge.

The city is built on a slightly elevated ridge above the Black River, with river bottom land and high, heavily wooded bluffs; Lake Onalaska, the man-made reservoir at its western edge, was created in the 1930s and flooded the shallow natural Rice Lake.

The population of Onalaska was 18,803 at the 2020 census, with 7,900 households and 8,241 housing units counted in the city.

Onalaska's population swung with the lumber era: it had 826 people in 1880, shrank to 1,066 by 1920 as lumbering faded, then boomed to 9,249 by 1980 and 18,803 by 2020.

Public schools in the city belong to the Onalaska School District, headed by Onalaska High School, and the city is also home to Luther High School, a Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod school.

The Onalaska Omni Center is the city's convention center and indoor arena, and Altra Federal Credit Union is headquartered in Onalaska.

Until 1963, Onalaska had a train station that served the Dakota 400 passenger train; today the city is served by Interstate 90 and U.S. Highway 53, with La Crosse Regional Airport nearby.