The La Crosse USO Council convened its first meeting on 11 May, 1942, at the Vocational School. The Council, which was comprised of representatives from local service and civic organizations, was charged with coordinating local USO events, encouraging support, and overseeing the opening, operation, and ultimate closing of the USO club at 408 South Fourth Street.

During the war years, the club served the social and recreational needs of military personnel passing through the area. In addition to these responsibilities, the USO also provided both GIs and civilians with information on a range of issues from draft law interpretation to servicemen's readjustment to civilian life. The local club closed its operations in March of 1946, and the USO Council held its final meeting on 1 April that same year.

In February of 1951 the new USO surveyed La Crosse to see if need for the organization was present. Establishment of a USO center in La Crosse was approved and one was opened in the Young Men's Christian Association building at Seventh and Main Street as a temporary location. The USO center was then relocated at a permanent site in the YMCA in La Crosse in November of 1951. A new chairman, Robert W. Schilling, was elected in March of 1952; this is the last known documentation of the USO in La Crosse.