Licenses were required by the La Crosse Common Council from the very beginning of city government. These volumes (1856-1955) list the various types of licenses required by the City which changed over time. There is a gap in the license record from 1878-1881 inclusive. Examples of licenses issued by the City Clerk are retail and wholesale liquor, gun powder, taxis, "runners" (hotel proprietors), beverage, shows (circuses, menageries, etc.), pool/billiard/bowling alley, cigarette, electricians, plumbers, scavengers, auctioneers, transient merchants, and the like.

The earliest volumes were kept by the Treasurer’s Office, as some are labelled "Treasurer’s Journal" and include orders paid by the City and some other accounts, including tax certificates. Tax sales list only names and amount and certificate number. There are no links between the certificate numbers and an address or legal description. A span of years is generally covered in each volume, although the earlier volumes have several sub-groups of licenses within a volume. Generally, within the volume the licenses are arranged by type of license, therein chronologically recorded. Information recorded includes licensee name and fee collected.

The City Clerk’s Office at City Hall retains licenses since 1955