North Berrien Historical Museum

In 1981, North Berrien Historical Society founder Roger Carter donated his property to the Society with a life lease. Construction of a log cabin building was begun in 1989 and the North Berrien Historical Museum was opened in April 1992. 

The museum was the beginning of a complex that came to include five buildings on a four-acre campus. In 1994, the Nichols family donated money for the construction of an Agricultural Barn just west of the main museum, and in 1998, the Beverly family donated a wing—doubling the size of the building. In 2001, Roger Carter passed away and his house and barn were added to the inventory of museum buildings. Finally, in 2003, a one-room print shop building was constructed to house printing equipment from the Watervliet Record newspaper. 

In 2006, a millage was passed in Hagar, Coloma, Watervliet, and Bainbridge townships, as well as the cities of Coloma and Watervliet, to support the operations of the museum and mission of the North Berrien Historical Society. A director and staff were hired to administer the Society and its collections so that they may be used for the maximum public good.