Poltava museum of local lore is one of the oldest museums in Ukraine. It was founded in 1891 as a museum of the history and nature of the Poltava province thanks to the initiative of Professor Dokuchaev. The museum contains many objects of history, natural history, ethnography, archeology and culture in general, as well as the materials and evidence about the famous residents of the city.

The building, which today houses the Poltava Regional Museum, was built in 1908 as the home of the Poltava province zemstvo. The author of the project was made by B. Krichevsky, using drawings E. Shishkov. The building was the first example of the so-called Ukrainian architectural style in the Poltava region. In 1920 the building was transferred to the provincial zemstvos Central proletarian Poltava museum.

In 1906 E. Skarzhinsky gave zemstvo important collection of museum exhibits - about 20 thousand. A little later, the museum was transferred to a collection P. Bobrowski. Until 1941, the museum operated separate exposition entitled "The Cabinet glorious Poltava." During the Great Patriotic War, most museum exhibits looted and burned the room itself. In the 50-ies. The museum building was again rebuilt, retaining its basic forms.

The building, which houses the Museum of Poltava, has a symmetrical W-shaped. In the middle part there is a large conference room, a central hall with the front stairs and lobby. On the third floor of the building housed various museum spaces and rooms of the museum staff.

Today the museum has more than 190 thousand units. Here is about 155 Plahtiy 360 carpets, large collections of numismatics, archaeological finds, towels, embroidery, pottery and other valuable materials. The museum exposition consists of the departments of history, archeology, ethnography, history of folk art and religion.