6. Kirjastonranta (Library riverbank)
Kirjastonranta (Library riverbank) was formerly known as Tuupala riverbank, where the Tuupala estate’s sauna and other buildings were located. A library was established in Kuhmo first in 1880 and it used to operate in various rented spaces until 1967 when the first library building was built in connection with the fire station. In 1988, the Kuhmo Library moved to a new library building, Atalante, on the bank of the Pajakkajoki River.
The Tuupala estate got its name from the Tuupainen family who cultivated its lands. The estate had several owners until it came under the Kainulainen family’s ownership at the end of the 19th century. In 1958, Uuno Kainulainen donated the main building of the estate to the municipality of Kuhmo. Tuupala Museum was opened to the public in June 1975. The museum complex includes the main house and side buildings, a small cabin, and a courtyard storehouse, as well as a sauna and a threshing barn transferred from elsewhere, and three granaries located on the other side of Tervatie Road.
Over the years, Tuupala premises have housed various establishments, such as a guest inn, shops, a post office, a pharmacy, a library, a dentist, and a maternity and child welfare clinic. It has also served as the rural police chief’s residence, a headquarters during the Winter War, and an overall centre for the local municipal and social life.
In the museum yard, a tar boat loaded with wood tar barrels is on display under a shelter. Tar burning was a significant source of income in Kuhmo at the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Tar that was produced all over the parish was transported in rowing boats along waterways to Oulu, where it was sold to tar merchants.
Tar boats were long and narrow. These 10–14 meters long and 1.2 meters wide boats could hold over 20 tar barrels, each with a capacity of 125 litres (33 gallons). In addition to tar, the boats were loaded with e.g. provisions, oars, paddle, a sail with a mast, as well as poles and a towing rope for the return journey. The round trip took several weeks.
Q. Kuhmo Town Library Atalante (Nurmela-Raimoranta-Tasa 1988)
R. Tuupala Museum
S. Paabelin torni (Tower of Pabel) (Kari Cavén 2019)
T.Valon huone (Room of Light) (Irma Laukkanen 1992)
On the bank near the library, there is also a recreation jetty.