Oswego County Historical Society’s original founders organized a celebration in 1896 recognizing the 100th anniversary of the evacuation of the British from Oswego and Fort Ontario. This centennial extravaganza was a momentous event in local, state, and national history, and attracted thousands of spectators.

After the event’s success, a permanent organization was established, dedicated to interpreting the people, places and events germane to Oswego County history through exhibitions and educational programming.

Since then, the Society has preserved and promoted the history of the greater Oswego community for over a century, collecting thousands of artifacts, photographs and manuscript collections that document the county’s rich history. And, since 1946, the Society has owned and operated its most ambitious artifact of all — the magnificent Richardson-Bates House Museum, an opulent Italianate, Tuscan Villa style mansion, a landmark on the National Register of Historic Places in Oswego, N.Y.