In early 1971, Grand Blanc resident Gereva Tremblay approached Citizens Bank president Ezra Perry and told him of her idea to organize a historical society and small museum for the community. He responded by giving Gereva fifteen dollars as seed money. With this support and the interest of several prominent area residents, the Grand Blanc Heritage Association was organized at the Citizens Bank community room on February 17, 1972. Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws were filed later that year, signed by Ezra Perry, John Evatt, Jane Ward, Helen Neely, Bruce McArthur, and Gereva Tremblay.

Early donations came from the homes, barns, and attics of the founding members, who contributed artifacts, photographs, and documents from their ancestors. The Association’s first exhibit was set up in the front window of Day Brother’s Hardware in commemoration of Community Pride Day. Then, in 1974, the City of Grand Blanc gave the Heritage Association a single room in the old Education Wing of the First Congregational Church, then in use as the city hall. Later, they received use of the old sanctuary of the Congregational Church as a permanent museum space.

The Heritage Association has long taken the initiative in commemorating area history. It has sponsored or assisted in the designation of seven sites as State of Michigan Historic Sites and worked to preserve structures like the Mason Tavern and Simeon Perry homestead. Additionally, volunteers have marked major community events, spearheading the American Revolution Bicentennial Committee, the celebration of the community sesquicentennial in 1983, and the centennial of the Perry Center in 2022.