Liebenthal, KS

Liebenthal is an early Volga German settlement on Big Timber Creek, eight miles north of La Crosse in Rush County. Families who arrived in 1876 brought the name from Liebenthal on Russia's Volga, then built a community around farming and St. Joseph Catholic Church. A dispute over water and land between the first settlement area and a neighboring section split some families toward Schoenchen, while those who stayed continued the town's church-centered life. Today Liebenthal remains part of the La Crosse area, with the creek valley and parish history giving this small city its distinctive character.