Welcome
The Priscilla U. Byrns Heritage Center serves as home to the The Heritage Museum and Cultural Center and offers a state-of-the-art setting for your trip to the past. The new center, which opened to the public in 1997, houses the society's exhibit halls, artifact and archival collections, research library and other facilities.
Society educational programs and services include:
- public events and lectures
- museum exhibitions for the public and school programs
- a research library and archive
- Frederick S. Upton Fellowship Program in Public History
- support for the preservation of historical buildings and neighborhoods
Whether you're a visitor or a long-time resident, come see how the The Heritage Museum and Cultural Center can take you on a journey through the history of Michigan's lake frontier.
Vision Statement
The Heritage Museum and Cultural
Center will become a
national model for historical research, preservation, and education, where
people enjoy history and appreciate how it affects their present and future.
Mission Statement
The mission of The Heritage Museum and Cultural
Center is to engage the public in a
vibrant organization that promotes historical preservation, education, and
research that relates to Benton Harbor, St.
Joseph and the surrounding region. We seek to inspire
our visitors to make a personal and emotional connection to the past by
providing on-going historical exhibits and programs that enable all persons to
see their present and future more clearly.
Core Values
There is a fundamental human need to understand the past in
order to relate to the present and plan for the future.
We are responsible to provide the resources to meet that need for everyone