In mid-1906, a natural and archaeological museum was founded in Sengiley, about which little information has survived. Its creator was Nikolai Nikolaevich Zakharin, a state councilor and district chief of the 1st section, who for a long time managed the Olginsky orphanage and from 1908 was a full member of the Simbirsk provincial scientific archival commission. Living in Sengiley, he collected a significant collection of ancient weapons found in the district, as well as coins and jewelry, including gold, discovered by peasants from the village of Bueraki. Later, his interest shifted to ancient fossils and household items. Soon, the private collection turned into a city museum, for which a room was allocated. After the museum opened, the townspeople donated several paintings by famous artists, a chandelier, and other valuable exhibits. The collection was also supplemented with weapons and ancient books.

In 1908, Zakharin appealed to the archival commission with a request to transfer some duplicates from the Murano burial ground to the museum. As a result, items such as a piece of leather belt, beads, a metal buckle, an earring, an amulet, a piece of strap, a yoke from a bucket, a fragment of leather footwear, and shards of clay dishes were donated.

After the revolution, the museum was closed and was only remembered in 1919. At the district council meeting held from March 16-18, someone asked about the fate of the museum. It was reported that the exhibits were in the premises of the district executive committee and that a new Soviet museum was planned to be opened. However, the exhibits gradually disappeared, and the museum was never opened. Part of the collection was possibly looted, while some was transferred to the Ulyanovsk local history museum.

In 1956, Alexander Soluyanov arrived in Sengiley, who worked as the head of the propaganda department in the Regional Committee of the Communist Party until 1962. Around him gathered like-minded people: teachers, intellectuals, and history enthusiasts interested in the history of the region. The idea arose to create or revive a local history museum.

An article about finds in the area, such as the skull of a short-haired mammoth and ancient silver coins, was published in the district newspaper "Lenin's Path" on April 3, 1959. The article proposed creating a museum to store these finds, as previously all exhibits had been transferred to the Ulyanovsk local history museum.

In 1962, Soluyanov became a history teacher at the pedagogical college. Two years later, on February 24, 1964, a local history museum was opened in the city, the first of the non-state museums in the Ulyanovsk region. It was located in one of the rooms of the pedagogical college and operated on Sundays.

Later, the museum moved to the building of the district newspaper's editorial office, where a room was allocated for it on the second floor. The district executive committee's decision on March 28, 1966, noted that the museum was conducting important work in collecting local history materials and educating visitors in the spirit of love for their homeland. 1,000 rubles were allocated from the budget for its needs.

In 1967, the museum was provided with a new building on Lenin Street, where the city bank used to be. In 1968, the museum reopened to visitors and has been located in this building ever since. On April 21, 1999, the museum was named after its founder and became known as the "Sengiley People's Local History Museum named after Alexander Ivanovich Soluyanov."