Permanent exhibition

Photos

The museum features 129 numbered photographs that guide visitors through the exhibition. You can explore the exhibition using the photo catalog, available in Finnish, English, German, Swedish, French, Spanish, and Russian. Many of the photos were taken by photographer Veikko O. Kanninen.

The photographs come from the following collections:

SA: SA-kuva, Finnish Defence Forces, Helsinki
KM: Kainuu Museum photo collection, Kajaani
KSI: Central Finland Aviation Museum photo collection, Tikkakoski
VOK: V. O. Kanninen photo collection
Unmarked photos: Kuhmo Museum photo collection.

Maps and artifacts

The museum displays numerous maps related to Kuhmo and authentic artifacts from the Winter War. The largest items in the exhibition are the 37K/36 anti-tank gun and the armored artillery tractor T-20 Komsomolets, model 1940. You can take photos of your group next to the tractor!

The exhibition also includes a wide range of medical service-related items. You can learn about wartime companion plants and pests (cockroaches, lice).

Scale models

The Winter War Museum features four scale models: the Luvelahti motti at Saunajärvi, the Polikarpov R-5 and Tupolev TB-3 aircraft, and the Civil Guard House Korpilinna.

Researcher’s corner

In the researcher’s corner, you’ll find a reference library, Winter War-era banknotes donated by the North Karelia Numismatists Association, a memorial plaque for Estonian-Finnish volunteers who fought in Kuhmo, and honor boards commemorating Kuhmo residents who fell in the wars, originally placed in village schools.

The reference library includes Winter War literature, interviews, frontline soldier registers, copies from the National Archives (formerly the War Archives) related to Kuhmo’s Winter War, such as battle reports, and materials on the Lotta Svärd and Civil Guard organizations.

List of literature

A great deal of literature has been published about the events in Kuhmo during the Winter War. The list is only available in Finnish.

Museum building

The Hiitola building was originally constructed as part of the Kalevala Village, intended for the Children’s Kalevala. The building was never furnished. The museum received the empty building for its use in late autumn 1993.

Memorial plaques

On the wall of the Winter War Museum’s vestibule are displayed memorial plaques of the Finnish Boys’ Heritage Association (Suomen-Pojat) and the Oak Leaf Heritage Federation (Tammenlehvä).