Kolikkoinmäki Workers’ Home Museum

In the 1920s and 1930s, Iisvesi in Suonenjoki became a significant timber loading site, a centre of the sawmill industry, and the largest inland port in Finland. The H. Peura export sawmill was completed in 1896, Iisveden Metsä Oy in 1923, Kymi Oy in 1906, and the Peura spool factory in 1908–1909. The sawmills needed labour, which arrived from the local area and surrounding municipalities. Housing was needed for the new residents, and this led to the creation of a unique residential area for factory workers on the rocky and rugged Kolikkoinmäki hill. The area has at times been called the “Pispala of Savonia.”

At the Kolikkoinmäki Workers’ Home Museum, you can explore the life of a sawmill worker in the early 20th century. The idyllic home, furnished in the style of the 1950s, allows visitors to sense the atmosphere of the past. The distinctive wooden house district of Kolikkoinmäki is also the childhood home of, among others, the songwriter and composer Lauri Jauhiainen and the well‑known singer Erkki Junkkarinen.

“Memories from Kolikkoinmäki” Mobile Tour

You can also explore the Kolikkoinmäki Workers’ Home Museum and the surrounding residential area through the Memories from Kolikkoinmäki mobile tour.
The narrator is a native resident of Kolikkoinmäki, who shares the area’s fascinating history through personal memories.
Three of the stories are located in the museum area and two in the Kolikkoinmäki residential area.

The tour is available in the Salmi AR application, which can be downloaded from Google Play or the App Store.
For the best experience, use headphones.
The app and the tour are free of charge.

Address: Kiertotie 8, Iisvesi