The Valkeamäki Rural Museum of Virtasalmi

The Valkeamäki Rural Museum of Virtasalmi is located next to the former elementary school in Valkeamäki, approx. 8 km from downtown Virtasalmi. Opened in 1998, the museum is owned and run by the Virtasalmi Valkeamäki Agricultural and Domestic Society. In addition to the exhibition hall built in 1990, there is also a drying barn made out of logs, a barn, a smoke sauna from 2006 and and a potato cellar from 2007. A storehouse was built in 2009 to house various machines and devices from the 1930’s until today.

The artefacts on display are mainly from the first half of the 20th century and they have been collected from houses and farms in and around Valkeamäki area. The exhibition talks about self-sufficiency in agriculture and forestry, which is how the overwhelming majority of Finns still lived like at the end of the 19th century.

The bottom floor of the 2-storey exhibition has large tools and implements such as vehicles and forestry tools. Upstairs has artefacts related to men’s and women’s handicrafts and the household. The drying barn has a display of items related to processing grain and the barn has tools to prepare the soil.

The Agricultural and Domestic Society organizes work demonstrations at the museum. In addition, it is possible to hold various events at the school, which is also owned by the Agricultural and Domestic Society.