Venclauskiai House-Museum

Tue, Thur, Fri 10 am - 6 pm

Wed 10 am - 6 pm

Sat - Sun 11 am - 5 pm

The exposition of the Venclauskiai house-museum shows the life and activities of the Venclauskiai family and the history of Šiauliai in the first half of the 20th century. The exposition is installed in the house of Stanislava and Kazimieras Venclauskiai, built between 1925 and 1927 (the architect Karolis Reisonas), where the family lived until 1944. The house of the Venclauskiai family was often called the White Palace by local residents during the interwar period.      

            The first floor of the building welcomes you with impressive wall decorations of the interwar period. It is a rich stencil painting in Art Nouveau as well as national style, which is rarely found in Lithuania. The impressive wall decor partly determined the concept of the exposition – to highlight the beauty of the wall paintings uncovered and restored by the restorers. Since the life of the Venclauskiai family in this house mainly revolved around on the first floor and the basement (the second floor and the attic were rented), these spaces tell the story about the large Venclauskiai family.

                      A plate on the door with the inscription: “Kazimieras Venclauskis – a sworn lawyer” invites you to the beginning of the exposition, which is located in the former personal area of the lawyer: the reception and representative offices, his bedroom. These spaces tell the story of K. Venclauskis (1880–1940), a well-known lawyer, advocate, one of the creators of the independent state of Lithuania, the first burgomaster of Šiauliai, a politician, a member of the Constituent Seimas and the First Seimas, an active public figure and patron. The social and cultural activities of Kazimieras and Stanislava Venclauskiai are also presented here: the smuggling of the banned Lithuanian press, organization of the first Lithuanian evenings, performances, participation in the Great May Festivals in Šiauliai, the activities of the society “Varpas”. The Venclauskiai home in Šiauliai was like a hearth of cultural activities. Čia dažnai svečiuodavosi pirmųjų lietuviškų spektaklių kūrėjai, tautinio atgimimo veikėjai: Žemaitė, Povilas Višinskis, Jonas Jablonskis, Gabrielius Landsbergis-Žemkalnis, Vydūnas ir kt. Creators of the first Lithuanian plays, actors of the national revival – Žemaitė, Povilas Višinskis, Jonas Jablonskis, Gabrielius Landsbergis-Žemkalnis, Vydūnas, and others – often visited this house.

                            Next to the lawyer’s bedroom, the main highlights of the life and work of Stanislava Jakševičiūtė-Venclauskienė (1874–1958) are presented in the former bedroom of his wife Stanislava. Stanislava was an exceptional woman, a Šiauliai citizen – she comes from the noble Jakševičiai family, was born, grew up and spent most of her life in Šiauliai. One of the first Lithuanian actresses and artistic directors, an active public figure, politician and mother of more than 100 children, she is often called the mother of Šiauliai. Stanislava almost never slept alone in her bedroom – two or three little children who needed custody often found shelter here. S. Venclauskienė was a very good-hearted, devout Catholic who helped everyone, while her husband Kazimieras was a social democrat and free-thinker. This did not prevent them from taking care of a large family together. K. and S. Venclauskiai raised and educated more than a hundred children who came to their home in various ways.

                      In 1940, after the death of K. Venclauskis, Stanislava remained a widow. During World War II, the German commandant’s office was located in the house. S. Venclauskienė and her daughters were not scared and hid the Jews at home. After the beginning of the second Soviet occupation, in 1944, Stanislava Venclauskienė with her daughter Danutė and her youngest foster child Marius moved to the West. She died in 1958 January 16 in Waterbury, USA.

                      Venclauskiai had two daughters – Danutė (1903 – 1999) and Gražbylė (1912 – 2017). Danutė is buried in the Lithuanian cemetery in Waterbury, Connecticut, USA, whilst Gražbylė – in Old (Talkšos) cemetery in Šiauliai next to her father Kazimieras Venclauskis. The daughters of Venclauskiai had their own rooms in the house, but several foster children often lived in them as well. The younger daughter, Gražbylė, lived on the first floor near her father’s room and often helped him, later she became a famous lawyer herself, an honorary citizen of Šiauliai. In Gražbylė’s room, you can list her photo album and see the skates in which she skated until her old age.

          On the first floor, you can also see other richly decorated rooms (they are divided according to the different wall decorations restored by the restorers: dining room, children’s rooms, living room, bathroom). In the dining room and living room the most democratic atmosphere was prevailing, never lacking in liveliness and clamour. Rooms, where a large family used to live, now are left for the activities of visitors: educational classes, events, exhibitions.

The Venclauskiai house met all the most modern hygiene standards of the time. The house was equipped with water supply and sewage systems. A bathroom was equipped on the first floor next to the stairs to the basement. Various hygiene items from the interwar period can be seen here, as well as an authentic central heating radiator.

          In the basement, the story continues about the foster children of the Venclauskiai family, as well as the eldest daughter Danutė, who always wanted to be as close as possible to the youth and therefore chose her room here. Showcases display interwar textbooks, learning devices, toys, and numerous photographs of foster children. The smallest museum visitors love to be here, because they discover various attractive activities. There was a kitchen in the basement, a place for food smoking and a cold room for food storage. Now the food industry of Šiauliai is presented in these premises, kitchen utensils, dishes and various household items of the interwar period are exhibited.

                      Other rooms in the basement are dedicated to the Holocaust and the rescue of the Jews. During the Second World War, Danutė Venclauskaitė founded a sewing factory where she employed 70 Jews. During the Holocaust, work was the hope of salvation for Jews. Stanislava Venclauskienė and her daughters hid Jewish children in their house and took care of rescuing the Jews. After the restoration of Lithuania’s independence, Stanislava Venclauskienė and her daughters Danutė and Gražbylė were awarded Saving the Dying Cross and the medals of the Righteous Among the Nations. The Holocaust theme is complemented by the drawings of artist Mindaugas Lukošaitis.

                      A staircase decorated with pansies leads to the second floor of the building. It is symbolic that the motif of the pansy is found in this house that sheltered many orphans. The exposition here begins with a story about the Royal Danish Consulate that was working in the building between 1929 and 1936 (leasing the premises from the Venclauskiai family) and Vladas Masiulis, the Danish Honorary Consul and a merchant who lived here with his family for some time. The main room of the second floor presents the social and cultural life of Šiauliai of the interwar period: the establishment of Šiauliai Drama Theatre, “Aušros” museum, public parties, evenings, public events of the city.

                       Considerable space is devoted to the rapidly changing and modernized architectural face of the city during that period, and the story of the Venclauskiai building is also told – in 1955, the Venclauskiai house was given over to Šiauliai “Aušros” museum. After the restoration of Lithuania’s independence, in 1991, Gražbylė and Danutė Venclauskaitės donated their recovered parents’ house to the city of Šiauliai with the condition that the building will always house the museum. In 1992, the building was officially named the Venclauskiai House, and it was granted the status of an immovable cultural heritage object. Between 2016 and 2019, the Venclauskiai House was restored and renovated, the garden area was reorganised, the building was adapted for multi-purpose museum activities.

Various exhibitions, meetings, book presentations are held and historical literature is exhibited in the exhibition hall on the second floor and the library-reading room.

Ticket – 5 Euro (with discount 2,5 Eur)
Guided tour – 20 Euro (no discounts)

Photography and shooting for personal event (for one person) – 7 Eur
Marriage registration ceremonies are available at the Villa – 200 Eur

Park visitation is free.