Bi-County League
Wisconsin high school athletic conference (1928-1959)
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The Bi-County League is a former high school athletic conference with its membership base in west central Wisconsin. The conference was active from 1928 to 1959, and all of its member schools belonged to the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association.
History
1928–1955
The Bi-County League was formed in 1928[1] by eight small high schools near the Mississippi River in west central Wisconsin: Alma, Arkansaw, Cochrane, Durand, Fountain City, Gilmanton, Mondovi and Nelson.[2] All original members were located in two counties (Buffalo and Pepin), which is where the name originated from. Five years after it was founded, the conference lost three members to the new Mississippi Valley Conference (Alma, Durand and Mondovi),[3] along with a fourth becoming an independent in Fountain City. Pepin replaced the four departing schools, bringing the membership tally to five.[4] Alma and Fountain City rejoined the Bi-County League in 1934[5] to bring membership back up to seven schools. Plum City joined the Bi-County League in 1935,[6] replacing Cochrane after their exit. They would rejoin the next year,[7] bringing the conference back up to eight members. It would stay at this number for most of the next two decades, save for a season when Maiden Rock was the Bi-County League's ninth school.[8][9]
1955–1959
The Bi-County League’s membership was whittled away by rural school district consolidation in the 1950s, starting with Nelson’s closing and redistricting to Durand in 1955.[10] Two years later, Plum City left for membership in the Dunn-St. Croix Conference,[11] and after the merger of Cochrane and Fountain City in 1958,[12] the conference was left with only five members.[13] The Bi-County League was dissolved in 1959, with four schools (Alma, Arkansaw, Gilmanton and Pepin) forming half of the new West Central Conference[14] and Cochrane-Fountain City becoming members of the Mississippi Valley Conference.[15]
Conference membership history
Final members
| School | Location | Affiliation | Mascot | Colors | Joined | Left | Conference Joined | Current Conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alma | Alma, WI | Public | Rivermen | 1928,[1][2] 1934[5] | 1933,[3] 1959[14] | Mississippi Valley, West Central | Dairyland (coop with Pepin) | |
| Arkansaw | Arkansaw, WI | Public | Travelers | 1928[1][2] | 1959[14] | West Central | Closed in 1992 (consolidated into Durand) | |
| Cochrane-Fountain City | Fountain City, WI | Public | Pirates | 1958[12] | 1959[15] | Mississippi Valley | Dairyland | |
| Gilmanton | Gilmanton, WI | Public | Panthers | 1928[1][2] | 1959[14] | West Central | Dairyland (coop with Independence) | |
| Pepin | Pepin, WI | Public | Lakers | 1933[4] | 1959[14] | West Central | Dairyland (coop with Alma) |
Previous members
| School | Location | Affiliation | Mascot | Colors | Joined | Left | Conference Joined | Current Conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cochrane | Cochrane, WI | Public | Indians | 1928,[1][2] 1936[7] | 1935,[6] 1958[12] | Closed (merged into Cochrane-Fountain City) | ||
| Durand | Durand, WI | Public | Panthers | 1928[1][2] | 1933[3] | Mississippi Valley | Dunn-St. Croix | |
| Fountain City | Fountain City, WI | Public | Eagles | 1928,[1][2] 1934[5] | 1933,[4] 1958[12] | Closed (merged into Cochrane-Fountain City) | ||
| Maiden Rock | Maiden Rock, WI | Public | Rockets | 1950[8] | 1951[9] | Independent | Closed in 1956 (consolidated into Ellsworth) | |
| Mondovi | Mondovi, WI | Public | Buffaloes | 1928[1][2] | 1933[3] | Mississippi Valley | Dunn-St. Croix | |
| Nelson | Nelson, WI | Public | Vikings | 1928[1][2] | 1955[10] | Closed (consolidated into Durand) | ||
| Plum City | Plum City, WI | Public | Blue Devils | 1935[6] | 1957[11] | Dunn-St. Croix | Dunn-St. Croix (coop with Elmwood) | |
Membership timeline
List of conference champions
Boys Basketball
| School | Quantity | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Alma | 8 | 1936, 1937, 1938, 1944, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1959 |
| Cochrane | 7 | 1935, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958 |
| Fountain City | 3 | 1939, 1951, 1952 |
| Mondovi | 3 | 1931, 1932, 1933 |
| Durand | 2 | 1929, 1930 |
| Gilmanton | 2 | 1934, 1945 |
| Nelson | 1 | 1947 |
| Pepin | 1 | 1946 |
| Plum City | 1 | 1941 |
| Arkansaw | 0 | |
| Cochrane-Fountain City | 0 | |
| Maiden Rock | 0 | |
| Champions from 1940, 1942-1943 unknown | ||