Deserted Finland

Suspicions Confirmed

Another very familiar location. This is now my fifth visit to the area having previously been here in 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022 and now 2023. This is a former co-operative store probably designed by the legend of Finnish co-operative functionalism, Erkki Huttunen.

During these years the building has gone from bad to worse. Broken windows and falling plaster have been replaced by big advertising boards, windows are broken, balcony doors open and ceiling tiles can be seen hanging loosely through the windows.

But yet something is off with the location, and that is that the number and type of cars in front of it seem to change every time I go by.

This time, when I started going around the building, I noticed an old man at the yard. I went to ask about the place, and he indeed confirmed my suspicions.

The building is owned by some guy, who rents its premises out as cold storage space. So it’s not abandoned. But unless he does some major renovations to it and fast, it probably will be soon. It doesn’t seem like very waterproof anymore.

The Guard Is Up

This here is a former railway station. It was opened in the late 19th century and is the last remaining original station building on this stretch of track, which hasn’t seen passenger traffic since 1987.

The building now belongs to a private owner. It isn’t in a very good condition, and I’ve never seen any life in it despite passing numerous times.

Yet the owner protects their property. A camera is clearly visible in the picture above the warning sign. A definite order to turn around and vanish.

Another Forgotten Sawmill

Decades ago a small co-operative was founded in a small village. It started by extracting peat. Then it founded a mill, then the sawmill and finally a brickworks. It surprisingly grew into one the largest co-operative in the region. In the late 1960’s financers simply pulled the plug and the company went bankrupt.

According to some sources the sawmill operated until 1986, when it was closed. There still seemed to be something on aerial photos, so I decided to go have a look.

The aerial photos didn’t lie. There behind the trees and the heavy rain was indeed an old industrial building.

There were also other buildings, but everything was a complete write off.

So this has been the sawmill’s power station.

The graffiti again makes no sense.

The car parts looking things make me guess, that this area later served as a workshop of some kind.

Fairly heavy machinery. But not that old.

A few intact windows could still be found, but the building wasn’t standing straight anymore.

There was even a lower level with a larger collapsed building behind it.

I instead headed up.

What I expected to find was some kind of a primitive break / dressing room.

Ant hat is probably exactly what this has been.

The conditions for workers weren’t that good back then.

There was on further floor, but the building’s condition made me think twice.

After all, it was the last building in the area still standing. The rest had been reduced to scrap.

I sneaked back up through the basement and left. It had been raining heavily throughout my visit to the area, and I was slightly afraid of my camera.

A Neglected Treasure Part II

A large window. And a chair.

More chairs. The building had been abandoned for a long time and was in a very bad condition.

Another room.

And another kitchen. It seems, that there were three apartments downstairs. One in the former post office and two in the apartment section.

The paint cans again indicate, that somebody had at least considered renovating the place.

Moving on upstairs.

The first thing there was a nice lobby.

Another bathroom. And a sauna.

The windows in the lobby. What is the frying pan doing in the window?

There was a surprising small cupboard in the corner.

The trees had grown for quite some time to block the view.

A corner room.

Another surprising top corner cupboard.

The fireplaces were surprisingly small. Maybe they had been replaced at some point.

The kitchen of the upstairs apartment.

Back in the lobby.

A balcony door in the stairway.

Heading back down. There seems to be quite a crack in the wall.

One more view of a messy room.

According to documents of the municipal council, the company owning the building has been dissolved in 2019. There has been no use of water since 2010, so that was probably when the building was abandoned. In late 2025 the municipal council decided to cut the water to the building.

Although a very beautiful building and a sort of a landmark, I sadly think that it is beyond rescue.

A Neglected Treasure Part I

The first photo of this post is of a dilapidated wooden building. I first thought of it as a house, but it rather seems to be the auxiliary building to another one.

Which is here. The building was completed in 1945 to be the home and office of the local rural police chief. The building even featured cells for both men and women. The local tax and post offices also were in this building.

The building is one of the most architecturally impressive in the region. Yet it sits empty. And has been so for at least 10 years judging by Google Street view photos.

The door to the offices in the lower wing was open.

The toilet seemed surprisingly modern.

This was probably the former post office, as there was a safe.

The windows have been broken. And covered.

Even the kitchen looks like it is from the 1990’s. Apparently the area was converted into an apartment after business use ended.

The other side of the largish kitchen. It looks to be in a good shape.

Lots of shelves here. The ones to the right seem original.

This area was quickly explored and featured no access to other parts of the building. Let’s see, if I can find one.

Moving on to the back yard of the building looking for a point of entry.

I wonder, whether that is an old oven or a washing machine.

Well, there was an entry through the door leading to the basement.

I chose not to explore the basement heading upstairs instead. The cells probably would have been in the basement.

Welcome to a messy kitchen.

It was now raining really hard outside. That’s why it was also pretty dark inside despite it only still being early in the evening.

The original apartment area of the house was a mess.

And the place also was in a very bad condition.

The furniture seems old.

There were a lot of original features in the building. But that door has been blocked at some point.

There will be another post from this location.

Not Empty, Just Waiting

This beauty here is a former elementary school built in 1929. Behind it is the newer school built in 1955. The school was closed in 2009 and sold to a private owner in 2012.

The new owner renovated and rescued this old beauty, but in 2021 they put it up for sale. Technically it isn’t abandoned, it is just waiting for a new owner.

If I remember correctly, the building found a new owner, and for now its future looks to be safe. I just decided to feature it here, because it sets another good example, that old schools can be rescued if there is will.

Returning To The Factory Village Part II

Entering the second apartment seems to be through the kitchen.

And here we are in the living room.

The bathroom. This apartment seemed pretty modern when comparing with the collapsed ones.

Again looking back towards the better preserved yellow one.

The oven. This one looks like the 1980’s.

A rather big canister.

Looking towards the porch.

Another room, where renovations seem to be started.

Seems like the flag of Ukraine.

A fairly modern staircase. Let’s see, what there is up there.

This is the attic of the building. And car tires, it seems.

A big bin of quark. This is interesting.

One new corner with a rather distorted water boiler.

Another look at the upstairs lobby.

Going back down.

And one of the porches of the building. I will probably be back. There are just so many buildings to be entered.

Returning To The Factory Village Part I

After fully charging my camera and checking a couple of locations, I returned to the factory village, where I photographed the local store earlier that day. By now it was raining for real.

This time my aim was to check on the old apartment buildings.

The first two were yellow. And locked. It looked pretty much like each building would feature four apartments.

The first two were empty, but in a fairly good condition. The third one seemed a lot more run down.

And quite right enough, this one was a wreck.

The destruction in the first apartment was total. The ceiling was coming down and growing something green, the floor was also in a very bad shape.

This one counted as an access, but I couldn’t progress further.

A look back towards the yellow building in a much better shape.

The second apartment.

The damage in the small hall was extensive. The quality of the photo is also very bad.

I don’t think that the ceiling line should have a shape like that.

Well, it indeed looks like the collapse has started from the back side.

There was even a small walk in closet.

And this is the former living room. The previous yellow house can be seen through the window.

A few broken chairs were still present.

The back of the building. Full collapse has indeed started.

The following, grey building seen from the collapsed porch. But I wasn’t quite ready with this one.

Still In Use But Beautiful Enough To Be Featured

Another one of my so beloved 1950’s old schools. I’ve spotted this a couple of times, and I haven’t really been sure of its status. But after this I am.

If you look closer, there are cars parked on the parking lots. If you look even closer, there are lights in two of the windows on the top floor.

So this building is definitely still in some use. And I am wholeheartedly glad about it. May this one set a good example that use can still be found for these old beauties.