Location
Waseca is in Waseca County This county was established February 27, 1857. Its name is a Dakota word, which has been explained by Prof. A. W. Williamson as follows: "Waseca (wasecha),--rich, especially in provisions. I was informed in 1855 by a gentleman who was a stranger to me, who professed to be one of the first settlers, that this name was given in response to inquiries as to the Indian word for fertile, and adopted as a name. In Dakota writing and books the word waseca is spelled as we spell the name, and is a word likely to be given in answer to such a question. The soil is also very fertile." The name was first applied to the earliest farming settlement in 1855, near the present city of this name.The dictionary of the Dakota language, by Rev. S. R. Riggs, published in 1852, shows that this word was pronounced as if written washecha. It has the same accent and vowel sounds as Wadena. From: Upham, Warren. Minnesota Place Names: A Geographical Encyclopedia. St. Paul, MN: Minnesota Historical Society Press, First edition 1920. Third Edition 2001. Print.
