Jalkala Museum of History and Ethnography of Karelian Istmus.

The Jalkala Museum of History and Ethnography of Karelian Istmus and Southern Karjala was established in 1992. Before this date for many years it used to be a memorial museum of V. I. Lenin. These days the museum hosts materials on Karjalaiset, Savakot, Evrëmëiset, Suomi and other original inhabitants of the area. The exhibition demonstrates the history of Finnic and Baltic people in wide context. There are also some documents concerning the family of Parviainen and other former inhabitants of Jalkala village.

Jalkala Museum

The Jalkala Museum has unique combination of advanced exhibition facilities and natural environment. Today the complex of Jalkala Museum consists of memorial buildings which formerly constituted a farm of Johann Parviainen, an exhibition building and a large surrounding territory. Close to the museum building under an open air there is a complex of wooden sculptures depicting a scene from Kalevela epic. The Museum of Jalkala is situated north from Saint Petersburg near Terioki (Zelenogorsk) in nice rural area close the Gulf shore and lakes.

Museum building.

The museum area is large and suitable to accommodate concerts, performances and other public events. There is large parking area and a place for camping. A cheap accommodation can be arranged with nearby hotels and sanatoriums.
The Museum promotes various cultural activities. It hosts different concerts and performances. The exhibition of the Museum includes temporary shows of local crafts people. There are regular Kalevala evenings organised for groups of children visitors.

Jalkala is a former memorial museum of V. I. Lenin. In summer 1917 V. I. Lenin used to hide there in a farm of Parviainen. Due to this the building was preserved and well maintained in Soviet times. Before the Revolution this farm used to belong to Johann Parviainen, an owner of a steel plant called "Old Parviainen" in Saint Petersburg. At that time Jalkala was a small village of about 20 households. The exhibition tells often a tragic story of people who had been moved out from their homeland.

Jalkala villagers (early 20th century).

Jalkala is famous not only by the fact that it hosted V. I. Lenin. Another famous marxist G. V. Plekhanov died there in "Zimmerman" sanatorium. It is also a place where famous Finnish composer Sulho Ranta used to stay at summers. This place was also chosen by Russian painter Alexander Benua for many of his plain air works.