Röytty, Local history museum in Taipalsaari

Saimaa Geopark's natural and cultural site, Röytty Local Heritage museum, is located next to Taipalsaari Church. Röytty is an old military post house and a tavern. Today Röytty serves as a museum with its barns and buildings. The Röytty house was built in the late 17th century with the help of men from Taipalsaari, Savitaipale, and Joutseno. The first mention of Röytty as a military residence dates back to 1680. Röytty briefly served as a residence for lieutenants of the Swedish army until the entire Taipalsaari region was ceded to Russia in the Treaty of Turku in 1743. After that, the building was converted into a tavern. Its location at a well-known ice road from the Middle Ages and a transportation hub for water and land traffic brought many guests to Röytty’s guest house. Röytty served as a resting place for travellers, taking care of both the guests and their horses. In the 1930s, many guest houses in Finland went out of use, and the tavern operation at Röytty closed down in 1937. The last owner was Viktor Rikkonen, whose nephew Veikko Rikkonen transferred the property to the Taipalsaari municipality in 1988. The municipality restored the building as a local history museum, following the guidelines of the South Karelian Museum and the National Board of Antiquities, respecting its original state. In the summer of 1996, the Röytty local history museum was opened to the public with its exhibitions. Today, Röytty hosts a café run by local Taipalsaari associations during the summer months and around Christmas, as well as a sales exhibition for Taipalsaari artisans.