 The county seat was sited at Glencoe as part of the original act; it had been founded (June 11, 1855) by Martin McLeod, who was a member of the townsite company when the county was founded.The county was the site of several events during the Dakota War of 1862, including the siege of Hutchinson and the killing of the White family near Brownton.It was also the first place to use the Geier Hitch, a kind of animal husbandry that some characterize as animal abuse.