The Rylsk Local History Museum was established during the difficult times of the Civil War. It is located in an old building from the late 19th century, which used to be a private clinic of Dr. Kalinovsky. The first director and founder of the museum was S. K. Repina, a grandniece of the famous artist. Each year, the museum welcomes about 22,000 visitors.

In 2010, the Rylsk Museum became part of the Kursk Regional Local History Museum. Its collections include approximately 30,000 exhibits, among which are unique collections of ancient books, numismatics, sculptures, and paintings from the 18th and 19th centuries.

The exhibition area of the museum is 440 square meters.

The history of the Rylsk region is presented sequentially in 14 halls of the museum.