Mound Township near Hardwick in Rock County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

Home of the Blue Goose

March 4, 2026

1. Home of the Blue Goose Marker

Inscription. Jay N. "Ding" Darling designed the goose logo for national wildlife refuges while director of the U.S. Biological Survey, forerunner of the Fish and Wildlife Service, from 1934-1935. A Pulitzer-Prize-winning political cartoonist, he also drew the first Federal Duck Stamp.

Look for the goose on refuge signs and brochures; it represents special places where wildlife comes first.

Original, black goose by "Ding" Darling.

Wherever you meet this sign, respect it. It means that the land behind the sign has been dedicated by the American people to preserving, for themselves and their children, as much of our native wildlife as can be retained along with our modern civilization.

- Rachel Carson, Fish & Wildlife Service employee from 1939-1952 and author of Silent Spring

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Animals • Arts, Letters, Music • Environment. A significant historical year for this entry is 1934.

Location. 43° 44.828′ N, 96° 16.046′ W. Marker is near Hardwick, Minnesota, in Rock County. It is in Mound Township. It is on 181st Street ¼ mile east of 100th Avenue, on the right when

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traveling east. Located at the north trailhead of the To the Sky Trail at the Touch the Sky Prairie Unit, which is part of the Northern Tallgrass Prairie National Wildlife Refuge. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Luverne MN 56156, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southwest Minnesota. It is also in the American Midwest,

in the Corn Belt,

and on the Great Plains.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 11 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Preserving the Prairie (here, next to this marker); Restoring the Prairie (approx. 1.4 miles away); Prairie Passage / Tallgrass Prairie / Prairie Passage Route (approx. 4.6 miles away); a different marker also named Prairie Passage / Tallgrass Prairie / Prairie Passage Route (approx. 4.6 miles away); Blue Mounds State Park Interpretive Center (approx. 5.2 miles away);

Home of the Blue Goose and other Markers image. Click for full size.

March 4, 2026

2. Home of the Blue Goose and other Markers

Rock County Veterans Memorial (approx. 7 miles away); Shella Building (approx. 9.6 miles away); Jasper Military Service Memorial (approx. 10.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hardwick.

Also see . . . J.N. "Ding" Darling (1876-1962), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. (Submitted on April 7, 2026.)

March 4, 2026

3. Northern Tallgrass Prairie Sign with Blue Goose Logo

Home of the Blue Goose and surrounding Markers image. Click for full size.

March 4, 2026

4. Home of the Blue Goose and surrounding Markers

Credits. This page was last revised on April 9, 2026. It was originally submitted on April 7, 2026. This page has been viewed 37 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on April 7, 2026.