Records and their use

The Provincial Archives of Oulu holds records of regional and local government authorities which operate, or have operated, in its archives district.

Municipalities and cities store their records themselves. The Provincial Archives holds the archives of various abolished municipalities, the most important of which are the archives of the municipality of Petsamo. The Provincial Archives also holds the archives of city courts and city administrative courts of the so-called old cities in its district.

In addition, over 60 parishes in the provinces of Oulu and Lapland have deposited their oldest records in the Provincial Archives of Oulu. Original records are available for researchers with the exception of population register records, which are only available on microfilm.

The records of some 2,500 private records creators (private individuals, societies and businesses) constitute a major part of the materials. The archives of the representatives of the Laestadian missionary movement and societies and private individuals related to it form a separate collection, the Laestadiana collection.

Copies of records concerning northern Finland from other archives in Finland and abroad, mainly Swedish and Norwegian archives, have also been acquired for use by researchers.

The Provincial Archives of Oulu holds the archives of the world’s most famous northern Finn, Father Christmas. A sample of the letters sent to Father Christmas from around the world has been added to the archives every year since 1997.