Cleanup of Battle Areas
After the Soviet soldiers withdrew, the cleanup began to make the terrain suitable for civilians to return to their homes. The Soviets had buried some of their dead in various locations and marked the graves with wooden markers. The unburied bodies of Soviet soldiers were revealed in spring as the snow melted. The Finns buried about 10,500 Soviet soldiers in large mass graves. Individual fallen soldiers remained hidden in the forests and were buried later.
Cleanup continued in battle zones, yards, and fields. Weapons, ammunition, horse carcasses, vehicles, field bakeries, skis, and other items were removed. Dud ammunition was detonated. The clearance work was carried out by soldiers and military youth in the terrain cleanup detachments.
Evacuees return
The hope of returning home arose among evacuees immediately after the war ended. Permits to return were granted gradually, depending on the location of the house. The first residents of Kuhmo were able to return in April 1940. Some had to stay for several weeks in centers run by the Lotta Svärd organization. The return was eagerly awaited, as spring work in the fields had to be done. Residents of western Kuhmo returned first, while those from the parish village came back in May.
A zone about 15 kilometers wide was established along the eastern border, which was not immediately resettled after the war. Access beyond the demarcation line was allowed only later in the summer. Some houses, such as those in Laamasenvaara, were never permitted to be inhabited again. The Malinen family from Ala-Laamanen, who had been in captivity, returned to Kuhmo in June 1940. Two of their children had died in captivity. Military authorities opposing rapid resettlement of the border area justified their stance with security concerns (fear of renewed war, fear of saboteurs) and the continuation of fortification work (risk of exposure, difficulty in monitoring espionage).
Local Lotta Svärd members helped orphans, disabled veterans, widows, and families in need after the war. The Lottas returned from Sotkamo to Kuhmo on March 20, 1940.
Those who had lost their cows were given financial compensation or, alternatively, a cow evacuated from Karelia. Food was scarce. Some root cellars still contained potatoes, which helped for a short time. Additional aid came from so-called goodwill packages from Sweden and the United States. Finnish-Americans in particular took it upon themselves to help their former homeland.
Heroes’ funeral
The Fallen Evacuation Center (KEK) for the Kuhmo sector was located at Ruunakangas in Ontojoki, Sotkamo. Fallen soldiers from Kuhmo were transported to Sotkamo, where the bodies were washed, dressed, and placed in coffins. The deceased were stored in Sotkamo Church.
The first heroes’ funeral in Kuhmo was held at Hankaniemi Cemetery on April 21, 1940, when 62 soldiers who fell in the Winter War were buried. The blessing was performed by Reverend Emil Rechardt. At that time, the parish village was still a military zone, so relatives could attend the funeral only with special permits. The fallen were buried in a large communal grave covered with spruce branches. Two more were buried on May 19, 1940. In total, 102 Kuhmo soldiers who died in the Winter War are buried in the hero’s grave. It also includes those who later died from wounds sustained during the Winter War, even as late as 1954. The area also holds the fallen from the Continuation War.
In the summer of 1950, the hero’s grave area was raised above the surrounding ground, each grave was marked with a small horizontal headstone, and a large granite cross was erected as a common memorial.
Prisoners of War
About 400 Soviet soldiers were taken prisoner on the Kuhmo front. From Dolin’s Brigade, a total of 66 men were recorded in prisoner lists between February 15–19, 1940. Most of the prisoners were captured during the motti battles.
The prisoners were gathered at Pelso Prison in Vaala under the guard of home troops. Responsibility for transporting and guarding the prisoners lay with the military police. Sick prisoners were transported on truck beds, while the others marched on foot. The prisoners were repatriated between April 16–25, 1940.
Rebuilding
The Winter War in Kuhmo was fought using a scorched-earth tactic; retreating Finnish troops burned all buildings in the combat zone. Houses were mainly burned along the Saunajärvi, Hukkajärvi, Lentiira, and Vartius roads.
A total of 327 houses and countless outbuildings were destroyed in Kuhmo. In the parish village, 18 residential buildings were completely destroyed, along with the state and manttaali grain warehouses. In April 1940, a grid plan for the bombed parish village was completed by Otto Iivari Meurmann.
The Reconstruction Committee was led by District Sheriff Lauri Korteniemi. All properties damaged by the war were listed by village. The records included details such as the extent of damage and size of the destroyed buildings. Compensation was paid for 5,327 properties, totaling 50 million marks.
The State Reconstruction Office was managed by master builders. Office clerks handled paperwork, including drawings, building permits, aid applications, and material purchase permits. Decisions were made in Helsinki by the Ministry of Agriculture’s Settlement Committee and the Kajaani Agricultural Society’s Settlement Board. There was a shortage of all building materials.
Returning to normal life was bleak, especially for those in eastern Kuhmo, only standing chimneys reminded them of pre-war times. The first dwelling was often a smoke sauna or a hastily built small log cabin. Next came the cowshed. Reconstruction progressed slowly, as many men were engaged in fortification work, and soon the Continuation War called them back to the front.
Funds from a public collection in Sweden were donated to Finland for reconstruction. Swedish donation houses were designed in Finland, with only work and assembly drawings adapted to Swedish standards. Fifty-five Swedish donation houses were erected in Kuhmo, mainly in eastern Kuhmo along the Saunajärvi and Hukkajärvi roads and further north.
Companion plants of War
Military operations have a significant impact on local vegetation and flora. During the Winter War, Soviet troops were encircled along the Saunajärvi road for several months. The 54th Division had many horses. Feed for the horses was transported from deep within the Soviet Union, as no fodder was available from nearby areas across the border. Along with the horse feed came seeds of plants unfamiliar to Kuhmo’s flora, which found a favorable environment in the loosened and fertilized soil.
The introduced species included cornflower, field knapweed, eastern foxtail, bedstraw, chickweed, valerian, and eastern dock.
Winter War companion plants have been found in places such as Kankivaara, the Rasti–Kotila crossroads, Luelahti, Kannas, Loso, Löytövaara, Riihivaara, and Ala-Laamanen. These plants are mostly found around yards. They have survived best in areas where intensive farming has not been practiced.
