Ruokolahden kotiseutumuseo

About the museum

The Ruokolahti local heritage museum operates on the church hill in a grain storehouse built in 1861 by Antti Enlund. The municipality of Ruokolahti bought the storehouse in 1954 and had it renovated as a local heritage museum under the guidance of the National Museum (Kansallismuseo). The Ruokolahti-Seura opened the museum to the public a year later.

The local heritage association Ruokolahti-Seura was founded in 1947. Its chairman, Eino Pätilä, considered a museum necessary in which objects collected from the parish could be displayed. The building is still owned by the municipality, and Ruokolahti-Seura looks after the museum.

The museum holds about 3,000 objects on three floors. The first floor has the church museum and the Rahahuone (Money Room); the second floor has household, handicraft and wartime objects; and the third floor has objects presenting traditional livelihoods. The museum’s objects and about 600 photographs can be browsed in the Ruokolahti-Seura online database.

Highlights

• Church museum section with objects dating back to the 17th century
• Rahahuone (Money Room) with coin collections, old parliamentary records and prehistoric finds
• Kyökki (kitchen) permanent exhibition on the second floor
• Objects of farming, forestry, hunting and fishing on the third floor
• Museum objects and photographs in the online database

Permanent exhibitions

• Kirkkomuseo – The first-floor section presents objects of the present and earlier churches of Ruokolahti from the 17th century onward. The section was set up in 1972, when the parish turned 400.
• Kyökki – The second-floor permanent exhibition presents household and handicraft objects and the original furnishings of the grain storehouse.
• Perinteiset elinkeinot – The third-floor objects tell of agriculture and forestry, hunting and fishing.

Founded

1955

Operated by

Ruokolahti-Seura

Admission & discounts

Adult admission €4.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

The museum is located on the church hill of Ruokolahti, opposite the bell tower.

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

In summer the museum has a small Museopuoti (museum shop), which sells books published by Ruokolahti-Seura, postcards and other society products.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit