Blue Earth County (pop. 64,013), west of Waseca County, was named for the 108-mile-long Blue Earth River; the river was named for the blue-green clay that was once found on its banks.
The county seat is Mankato (pop. 39,309), located where the Blue Earth River joins the Minnesota River.
Sibley Park, Mankato
Minnesota State University, Mankato, has about 15,000 students. It was founded in 1868 as the Minnesota Normal School.
Also formerly known as Mankato State Teachers College
The Blue Earth County Courthouse was built in 1889.
In the French and Italian Renaissance style
The First National Bank of Mankato was built in 1913 in the Prairie School style.
The Happy Chef chain of restaurants is headquartered in Mankato; the first Happy Chef opened in 1963 in Mankato.
Breakfast served all day
Minneopa State Park is just west of Mankato.
Minneopa Falls
The park contains the Seppman Mill, a stone windmill that was built in 1864.
The stone walls are 32 feet tall.
The town of Lake Crystal (pop. 2,549) is on the shores of Lake Crystal.
NEXT: WATONWAN COUNTY
Beautiful name for a county. The waterfall at the state park is beautiful too.
As a child, I waited outside that bank while my father took my grandmother in to purchase a $25 US savings bond for each of her 14 grandchildren. I wonder what I did with mine when it matured many years later?
I feel obliged to note the following, which I discovered just this year and brings deep sadness to me: http://www.unitednativeamerica.com/hanging.html “Largest mass hanging in United States history” 38 Santee “Sioux” Indian men. Mankato, Minnesota, Dec. 16, 1862