The Civil Guard and Lotta Svärd Museum is located in the vicinity of the Seinäjoki market square. The museum operates in buildings that were designed by Alvar Aalto in the 1920s as the headquarters of the South Ostrobothnia Civil Guard and the home of Matti Laurila, the head of the local Civil Guard. The buildings and the estate have been classified as a built environment of national cultural importance and they have been protected under the Act on the Protection of Buildings.
The main building’s exhibition offers an introduction to the volunteer defence work performed by the civil guards, the Lotta Svärd Association and the Jaeger movement. The exhibits also include belongings from the home of Matti Laurila. The outbuilding houses an exhibition related to Marshall Mannerheim and an exhibition space for changing exhibitions. In the inner yard, visitors can see a Civil Guard sculpture by Pentti Papinaho and a relief depicting a young civil guard and a Lotta woman.
Guided tours, events and workshops are also arranged in the museum area. The main building’s ground floor hall can be hired for meetings, seminars or lectures. Coffee and cakes are served on request. The museum shop offers a wide selection of books, postcards and other products related to the themes of the exhibitions.
The Civil Guard and Lotta Svärd Museum is part of Seinäjoki City Museums. You may also be interested in the Provincial Museum of South Ostrobothnia.
