Blue Earth Marketing is owned by the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska. We are a division of Ho-Chunk, Inc., the award-winning economic development corporation owned by the Tribe.

Blue Earth‘s name is taken from an area in Minnesota occupied by the Winnebago Tribe in the 1850’s. The Blue Earth River that runs through the land is a translation of the Dakota Indian word “Mahkato”. The river was given the Indian name for the blue/black clay found in the high riverbanks.

The Winnebago Tribe originated in Wisconsin thousands of years ago but later was forcibly moved several times throughout its association with the white man. In 1848, the Winnebago were sent to the Crow Wing River in Minnesota. Eight years later, they were moved south to Blue Earth County, Minnesota where they remained until after the Sioux uprising in 1862. Although the Winnebago had no part in this, the government deported them to South Dakota and placed them with the Nakota (Yankton Sioux).

At this point, the Winnebago began to rebel. Many left the reservation and returned to Iowa, Minnesota or Wisconsin. The others fled down the Missouri to the Omaha Reservation in Nebraska. In 1865, the government accepted this and created a separate Winnebago Reservation in northeast Nebraska. Today, there are two Winnebago tribes: the Wisconsin Winnebago and the Nebraska Winnebago.

Blue Earth Marketing is located in the beautiful Ho-Chunk Village Development of the Winnebago Tribe in the rolling Loess Hills of northeast Nebraska. Ho-Chunk Village is a nationally known commercial and residential development that will create a brand-new community for the Winnebago people. We are proud of the progress that has been made to forge a new future for the Winnebago and we are excited to be part of such a dynamic and successful organization.