Eckerö Post & Tullhus

About the museum

Eckerö Post & Tullhus was built in 1828 as a post office and customs station on the old postal route between Sweden and Finland. Queen Christina established the postal route in 1636, and the mail was carried from Grisslehamn across the sea to Storby in Eckerö. After the war of 1808–1809, Eckerö lay at the far western border of the Russian Empire, and the old post office was replaced by a large building in the Empire style. The house was designed by Carl Ludvig Engel and was the first official building that travellers arriving from the Åland Sea encountered.

Postmasters, customs officers and other officials lived and worked in the house, which contained a post office, a customs chamber, rooms for travellers, stables and carriage sheds. During the cholera epidemics of 1834 and 1848, parts of the house were used as a hospital. When steamboat traffic across Åland increased, the postal administration’s head office moved to Mariehamn in 1875 and activity declined. A telegraph station was in the house from 1882 to 1900, and the last postal clerk lived there until 1935. In the 1950s the building was converted into a holiday home for postal and customs employees, and in the 1980s a café and a ceramics workshop were added in the northern wing.

Since 1994 the property has been owned by the Province of Åland and managed by the Government of Åland. The house is one of the best-preserved Empire buildings in Finland and was declared a protected building (byggnadsminne) in 2018. Today it is run as a seasonal museum by Ålands museum, with a long-term exhibition on the post, customs and the house, a collection of Åland crafts and design, and a new summer exhibition every year.

Highlights

• Empire building designed by Carl Ludvig Engel, completed in 1828
• The exhibition POST & TULL & HUSET on the Great Post Road and customs
• Collection of Åland crafts and design
• Child-friendly post office and the mascot Ekke for children
• Letter box with the house’s original old stamp
• Artists’ residency in the southern wing

Permanent exhibitions

• POST & TULL & HUSET – Long-term exhibition on the ground floor about the Great Post Road, the history of the post and customs, and the building and the activities that have been housed in it.
• Åländskt konsthantverk och design – Collection exhibition on the upper floor with objects from the Ålands museum’s collection of crafts and design, a collection that is still being built up.

Operated by

Ålands museum (Ålands landskapsregering)

Admission & discounts

Free admission with the Finnish Museum Card (Museikortet). Travel organisers receive a 20% discount against a voucher when pre-booking.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible: no information
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The building has an accessible toilet with a changing table and a lift. Pets may not be taken into the main building, except service and guide dogs.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Hands-on stations
• Baby changing facilities
• Playground / play area

A child-friendly post office and the mascot Ekke welcome the youngest visitors. Changing tables are in the accessible toilet.

Getting there & parking

The house is at Sandmovägen 111 in Storby, Eckerö, near the Eckerölinjen ferry terminal in Berghamn.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop
• Coat check

Café Stallet in the old carriage shed in the northern wing is open 9 June–10 August. The museum shop sells Åland crafts, books, postcards and stamps. Backpacks, larger bags and umbrellas are left at the staffed shop. Food and drink may not be consumed in the exhibition rooms.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit