The history of the ironworks park in Kauttua dates back all the way to the 17th century when Lorenz Creutz established an ironworks at the Kauttuankoski rapids. The first building – the residence of the ironworks manager – was built in the area in 1746. The original cellar vaults of this building are still there as the foundation of the current manor.

After the Creutz family, the Kauttua ironworks was run by the Timm family from 1700 to 1873; in the 1800s, the most visible role was played by the Falck family, who were connected to the Timms through marriage. The Falcks were responsible for the construction of most of the residential buildings belonging to the manor and ironworks area, which have been preserved: the main building, the bell tower, the Sepänkatu houses and the park.

Businessman Antti Ahlström came to town in 1873 and took the ironworks into a new era by replacing iron production with wood processing. He built a paper mill adjacent to the old ironworks. Since then, the paper mill has expanded in every decade up to the present day.

Kauttua is one of the few ironworks in Finland that is still in operation, even after terminating the original iron production. Currently, the Kauttua mills belong to a number of major international corporations, which means that the mill owners and local managers no longer have much overall influence on construction in the surrounding area. The key historical buildings still belong to the company but some parts of the estate have been sold to private buyers. This has led to complementary building activities and changes in the building base.