Kuopio City Archives
Information on the City archives
Kuopio City archives was established by the decision of the City Council on 7 May 1984. The current archive facilities on Suokatu were completed in 1989. With the centralisation of operations and several municipal mergers, the archive facilities became cramped over time. For this reason, some of the oldest material was transferred to rental premises at the Joensuu office of the National Archives of Finland in 2020. Inquiries related to materials located in Joensuu are also addressed to the Kuopio City archives.
Materials
The City archives serve as the end archive for the various units of the City.
The City archives store the archives of closed-down boards, agencies, institutions, etc. and the oldest documents of operational units. The City archives also store documents such as building permits of buildings that have had their final inspection done and some of the school-leaving certificates.
The documents from merged municipalities Kuopio rural municipality, Riistavesi, Vehmersalmi, Karttula, Nilsiä, Maaninka, and Juankoski are stored in the City archives in Kuopio and in Joensuu office of the National Archives of Finland.
An archive manager, four information service secretaries, and an information management coordinator work in the City archives.
Joensuu also is the storage location for the oldest original documents of the City of Kuopio, some of them dating back to the early 19th century. These include documents such as the 1818 cash receipts belonging to the city treasury archives, documents from the so-called schools for poor that operated before common schools, dated 1846–1872, and the social welfare board archives from 1853 onwards.
Municipal archives are mostly administrative archives, and their formation has been based on the legislation in force at the time in question. The city archive materials transferred to Joensuu include minutes of councils, boards, and committees; financial administration documents that need to be retained for a long time; and documents from common schools, poor relief, and supply to civilians.
The tasks of the City archives are to offer information services related to the materials stored in the archives, and to organise, screen, and catalogue the materials. In addition to its duties as a central archives, the City archives also plan and develop information management, manage documents, and guide, advise, and train the City’s employees.
Visiting the City archives
The City archives are located on the first floor of the Council building at Suokatu 42, 70110 Kuopio. The offices have two researcher spaces.
The City archives are open and offer customer service on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays 8:00–15:30.
A researcher space must be reserved either by filling in the booking an appointment form, sending an email to kaupunginarkisto(at)kuopio.fi, or by calling tel. +358 17 182 076.
City archives
City archives will be closed 10–23 July 2023.
City archives
Suokatu 42, 70110 Kuopio
PO Box 1097, 70111 Kuopio
Customer service: +358 17 182 076