25 kilometers from Arkhangelsk, near the village of Malye Karely, there is a museum of wooden architecture and folk art. The place was not chosen by chance -  it is one of the most picturesque in the vicinity of Arkhangelsk. The name of the village itself tells about the history of these places. In the XVII century, as a result of the Russian-Swedish war, Western Karelia was transferred to the Swedes. Tens of thousands of Orthodox Karelians were leaving their homeland and moved south-east, to the Tver province, and north, to the west coast of the White Sea and the lower reaches of the Northern Dvina. And now almost half of the Karelian people live in the Tver and Novgorod regions. Migrants who came to the lower reaches of the Dvina settled on the lands of the Lyavlensky Monastery and gave the name to two villages - Bolshaya and Malye Korely and the river Korelka. Immigrants quickly russified, and only the names of villages and rivers remind of the origin of local residents.

The initiative to create the museum belonged to the chief architect of the Arkhangelsk scientific and restoration workshop V.A. Lapin, who outlined in 1963 the program of its construction at the Ministry of Culture of the RSFSR. And on June 1, 1973 its gates were opened to the first visitors.

The museum has six sectors. Each sector is a settlement model with a typical layout for a particular area and the most typical buildings. Currently, four sectors have been formed. These are the Kargopolsko-Onega, Dvina, Pinezhsky and Mezensky sectors. They contain 120 monuments: churches, chapels, huts, barns, baths, mills, wells. The construction of two more is ahead - Vazhsky and Pomeranian.

A large team of architects, restorers and researchers worked on the creation of the museum. A continuous survey of the region was carried out to identify the most interesting monuments and study the culture of the North Russian population, as well as  collect exhibits. Researchers create hut interiors and thematic exhibitions. And although the formation of the museum has not yet been completed, it is the largest and most interesting open-air museum in Russia. It is no coincidence in 1996 by decree of President B.N. Yeltsin, it was listed as a particularly valuable object of the Russian Federation.

The museum reflects all the facets of the richest North Russian culture, and primarily peasant architecture. Russian people made a worthy contribution to the treasury of world culture, including  outstanding monuments of folk architecture. Back in the XVI-XVII centuries. foreign travelers admired the construction skills of Russian carpenters who built huts, mansions, and temples only with an  ax. At the same time, builders did not use projects and plans, relying on their own experience and samples created by predecessors. Usually temples were erected at the expense of peasant communities.   And throughout the north there were magnificent temple ensembles, organizing the space of the entire district. The names  of many creators of outstanding monuments are unknown, but their work speaks of the talent and skill of unknown Russian masters. Picturesque nature together with interesting architectural monuments have   made the museum a favorite vacation spot for Russian citizens and foreign visitors.