Abstract Until 1983, La Crosse County and the City of La Crosse maintained separate health departments. A merger of the City Health Department and the La Crosse County Health Department was proposed in 1982, and the La Crosse County Health Department Implementation Committee was formed to study the proposed merger and make recommendations to ensure that the transition proceeded smoothly. The merger went into effect as of January 1, 1983, and William Schmidt was appointed director of the new La Crosse...