For hundreds of years before the arrival of the first white settlers, Native Americans camped on the banks of a river they called "Ouitunya," which means "straight" and is today the name of the major river in Steele County.

The first white inhabitants arrived shortly after the 1851 treaties of Traverse des Sioux and Mendota, by which the Dakota Indians relinquished their tribal lands in this region to the United States Government. In the summer of 1835, Abner L. Wright, claimed land in the extreme northern part of the county. Located in what is now Section 5 of Medford Township, Wright and Chancey Lull erected a crude dwelling in which they endured the winter of 1853-54. This is believed to have been the first permanent white residence in the county.