The first reference to a historical society is made in correspondence to Bertie Township council in 1898 regarding the preservation of local history. In 1911 a meeting was held to establish a historical society to "arouse enthusiasm" for a memorial for the Ridgeway Battlefield and to help secure a bridge across the Niagara River.

Formation of the Bertie Historical Society began in 1969 with a meeting to discuss obtaining the Bertie Township Hall for a museum. Margaret Teal was the secretary of this group. Upon the amalgamation of Fort Erie and Bertie Township in 1970, the group was formally recognized with James Grassie, Earl Plato, Elia Lawson, Bev Jewson and Cecil Laur as the executive. The town granted use of a room in the hall in 1971. The museum opened July 1, 1972. Soon afterward, the town moved its entire operation from the hall and the society assumed occupation of the building. The town appointed a board of management in 1976 with Vic Miller as its first chairman.

The Fort Erie Railroad Museum began in 1973 with the acquisition of Canadian National Railway steam engine 6218. Volunteers prepared a site on Central Avenue, and local industries provided supplies and expertise. The engine and tender were formally dedicated on June 30, 1974. The Ridgeway Station, built at the turn of the 20th century, was acquired in 1975 and restored. It was moved intact to its current location. A committee of council was formed to operate the site in 1976 and further acquisitions were made. The Fort Erie Historical Railroad Museum Board's first members were Ken Rayner, Joan Klinghorn, W.A. Robertson, Ella Sayles, Margaret Klinghorn, Blanche Robertson, Margaret Rayner, Ruth and Ernie Philips, Aleut Woehl, Dorothy Renshaw, Stella Howe, Maretta Jones, Martin Marchand, Marjorie and George Thombs.

The two boards were amalgamated as the Fort Erie Museum Board in 1987 and the first curator hired. It was a cost-saving measure to share the administration functions of the Fort Erie Railroad, Fort Erie Historical and Ridgeway Battlefield Museums. The Museum Board included four representatives from the Bertie Historical Society and four representatives from the Friends of the Railroad Museum. While the administrative functions were shared, the fundraising and program delivery for these sites were kept separate—which reflected the way in which the community used these sites. Slowly over the next 13 years that changed . . . .

By the year 2000, it became apparent the town’s citizens were using these three heritage sites interchangeably. It was not unusual to have someone stop by the museum in Ridgeway to do research on the CNR or stop by the Railroad Museum for conservation advice.
Perhaps this change in the community’s attitude was a result of successful collaborations between the two supporting organizations. By combining resources, the Museum Board was able to publish the history book Many Voices, and was able to produce a visionary 10-year Heritage Strategic Plan for Fort Erie.
The volunteers from both supporting organizations saw the benefits of collaboration. They decided to stop dividing financial and human resources according to location (i.e. a Railroad expert and a Bertie Township expert), and allocate resources according to programming needs identified by the community (i.e. education, research, conservation etc.).

Today the Fort Erie Museum Board continues to deliver museum services for the Town with one budget supported by one diverse set of volunteers with one clear vision of the future. The Heritage Strategic Plan outlines this vision by defining:
• what makes Fort Erie unique;
• how to preserve these unique assets;
• how to interpret them back to the community to create a sense of place and pride;
• how to offer educational opportunities for the intellectual well being of all citizens;
• how to capitalize on the diverse nature of Fort Erie’s past;
• how to use these heritage resources more efficiently; and
• how to create community partnerships.

Town Council chose museum services to be one of six service areas to develop a “Results-based Business Plan” for the next term of council. This plan outlines performance indicators to measure the effectiveness of the delivery of museum services.
While there have been many changes in the way museum services have been delivered over the past 34 years, the motivation has remained the same—to preserve the unique attributes that make Fort Erie distinct.