The Buffalo History Museum building was built in 1901 as the New York State pavilion for the Pan-American Exposition. It is the only permanent structure from the Exposition that still stands. George Cary, a Buffalo architect, designed it.
Its south portico is meant to evoke the Parthenon in Athens. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987.
The society was founded in 1862, and its first president was Millard Fillmore. It has hosted observances of Lincoln's Birthday for over a century. In 1960 the name changed to the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, and it is now the Buffalo History Museum.