The Toledo History Museum (THM) was founded in 2006 with the creation of a board and incorporation with the Ohio Secretary of State. It acquired its 501(c)3 status in 2007. Before the development of the Museum, Toledo was the only city among Ohio's ten largest without a museum highlighting its history.
In 2011 the Museum opened at 2001 Collingwood Boulevard in the Milmine-Stewart House. It moved to the Valentine Building in 2018.
The Museum founders wanted to build a museum to preserve the physical artifacts of Toledo's history which would be exhibited to highlight and present the large and rich tapestry of Toledo's story. Industrial history plays a large part of Toledo's story, but THM also showcases social, cultural, and ethnic parts of the city's past.