On September 12, 1999, John Butler and Mike Nelson, both of Bloomington, began formulating a plan to bring a minor league hockey team to Central Illinois.

On September 20, 2005, the United Hockey League (UHL) awarded Butler and Nelson a membership to obtain a franchise.

"PrairieThunder" refers to a train called "Prairie Thunder" that passed through Bloomington in its early history.

[1] On July 20, 2006, the PrairieThunder unveiled their team logo, which featured a charging bison smashing its hooves into a sheet of ice.

Megan Fish, a 12-year-old sixth-grader at Chiddix Junior High School, was the first of 12 individuals to submit the name Chip.