The Local Heritage Museum was owned by the municipality and operated from 1952 to 1985, after which it lay dormant. The Museum opened its doors on October 2nd 1955, in the attic of a library building behind a fire station. From their collection of 500 items, more than 300 were put on display. The building behind the fire station was demolished in the fall of 1985, which necessitated a “temporary” move to a vicarage owned by the local parish.

The vicarage was bought by the municipality of Pieksämäki in 1986, and the majority of the Local Heritage Museum’s collection has been displayed in its attic in the summer months of every year since 2021. The exhibition includes items related to housekeeping, fishing and leisure activities, ranging from the late 1800s to the 1940s.

In 1986-1987, the municipality and the Pieksämäki local heritage society arranged a search for new items relating to modern urban culture. They jointly founded the cultural centre Poleeni, where a local history exhibition includes some of the old item collection and Pekka Kautovaara’s photos of traditional artisans.