The town of Searchmont received its name in honor of T. C. Search, the treasurer of the consolidated Lake Superior Company. Searchmont was once a bustling community built around the forestry industry. The local sawmill was the livelihood of most of the residents. When the mill closed in the early 1990s, much of the population moved away. The Searchmont Community Centre was renovated in 2002 with the aid of a SuperBuild grant provided by the Ontario government.