The Miami County Historical and Genealogical Society was organized in 1950 by a group of some 40 mostly Miami County residents as the Miami County Historical Society, with Leonard Hill as president. It was created to help celebrate the Ohio sesquicentennial coming up in 1953.

One of the ways the group decided to contribute was to develop and publish historical documents about the county. In 1952 they published their first book, Miami County History 1807 - 1953; a new version was begun in 1978, was in its second printing in 1982, and is still available as Miami County History 1981. In 1960 they compiled a list of Miami County Cemeteries. In 1973 they published a reprint of the 1875-1894 Miami County Atlas. The most recent publications include a book entitled Family Histories - Tired Iron containing stories of local families submitted by their descendants, completed in 2006. The book was financially supported by a contribution from an organization of local farmers who collected and displayed antique equipment--tired iron-- made to the Society upon the dissolution of their club. The Society published an updated, illustrated cemetery book in 2007, in honor of Ohio's bicentennial. There is also a CD containing all the back issues of the Newsletter plus copies of Society documentation. Numerous other publications which were developed along the way are listed on the Publications for Sale Web page.

The Society has changed organizational structure and focus over its lifetime, adding genealogy to its sphere of interest, changing its name to The Miami County Historical and Genealogical Society in 1987, and shortly afterwards becoming a chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society. In 1990 the Society incorporated as a non-profit organization to fit better with its sponsorship of educational activities in the genealogical sphere.

A series of award certificates was established: Miami County First Families in 1990, Pioneers and Settlers in 1991, and Civil War Families in 1999, for which members can submit documented ancestor history locating the individual in the county in the appropriate time period, and the Outstanding Miami County Historian Award, changed to Heritage Award in 1997. All these awards have separate pages and applications elsewhere on the Website.

In 1988 the Society helped start the "Genealogical Spring Jamboree" Workshop, a joint venture with several other Miami Valley genealogical societies held in Piqua, later becoming the "Miami County Spring Jamboree" Genealogical Workshop held in West Milton starting in 1996, and finally beginning in 2000 the current "Routes for Roots" Genealogical Workshop held again in Piqua.

The Miami County Historical and Genealogical Society continues to provide its local members with genealogical-related activities through the membership meetings and the Workshop, and communicate with its distant members via The Miami Meanderings Newsletter.