The museum seeks to bridge these multi-generational regional communities through engaging exhibits and dynamic programming.

The museum traces its origins to a 1915 exhibit of rare and historic artifacts presented by the Green Bay Art Club in the basement of the local library.

The exhibit soon outgrew its facilities, and, in 1923, a new museum was funded by a donation from Mr. and Mrs. George Grant Mason of New York.

Mrs. Mason asked that the museum be named for her mother and step-father, Mr. and Mrs. Arthur C. Neville, to honor their "work towards civic betterment in Green Bay.

[2] In April 1980, Brown County approved a referendum funding construction a new building for the museum.