Vocabulary

1. continuity – преемственность

2. mayor’s decoration – должностной знак мэра

3. sacred object – святыня

4. home guard regiments – полки народного ополчения

5. guard of honour – почетный караул

TEXT 14

The History of the Central Rostov Streets

Rostov-on-Don is an important administrative, industrial, scientific and cultural centre in the south of Russia. It is the main city of the Rostov Region – one of the largest and most economically developed regions of Russia. It is also the capital of the Southern Federal District, the place where there is an office of the Representative of the President of the Russian Federation.

Rostov is a Town of Combat Glory. It is awarded with two orders: the Order of Lenin and the Order of the Great Patriotic War.

Rostov is one of the largest cities in the C.I.S. Its population exceeds 1 million. Rostov is a multinational city.

Rostov-on-Don is situated on the right and left banks of the river Don. Rostov stands on the border line between Europe and Asia and one can move from one continent to the other simply crossing the bridge over the Don.

After the construction of the Volga-Don Shipping Canal in 1952 Rostov became a port of five seas: the Black Sea, the Azov Sea, the Caspian Sea, the White Sea and the Baltic Sea. Modern river-to-sea-going vessels and imposingly looking ships make regular voyages from Rostov to the central part of Russia and to many Mediterranean ports.

Rostov was founded on the 15-th of December, 1749 and at first it was meant to be a fortress. It was named after the metropolitan Dmitry Rostovsky and its functions were to defend the Southern borders of Russia against the numerous enemies. Rostov grew rapidly thanks to its advantageous geographical position. Being the largest fortress in the South of Russia the town has always played a significant role in its policy and economy.

Apart from being a major port, where the vessels of Russian, Armenian, Greek, Italian and Turkish merchants arrived, it was an important strategic point.

Rostov is a large railway junction. Hundreds of trains run through Rostov. Rostov is called «The Gates to the Caucasus». The modern airport enables the passengers to reach almost all cities of Russia, the C.I.S. and a number of foreign countries in the shortest period of time.

Bolshaya Sadovaya Street

Initially Staro-Pochtovaya Street (at present Stanislavsky Street) was the central street of Rostov. Later Moskovskaya Street and then Bolshaya Sadovaya gained this status.

In the 40-s of the 19-th century Bolshaya Sadovaya Street was almost the suburb of the town. Only Generalnaya balka and Kuznetskaya Street (Pushkinskaya) with its poor and shabby houses separated it from the steppe. Bolshaya Sadovaya St. started from the railway station, the first building of which was constructed in 1875. At the place of the present automobile parking there were many cabs and in the periods of the Temernik floods people could reach the station only in boats.

Then Bolshaya Sadovaya ran across the bridge over the Temernik where there was a paper-mill owned by merchant Panchenko. Nowadays a large paper-mill known for its wall-paper is also located at this place.

Further on, at the corner of Bratsky by-street, on the opposite side of Bolshaya Sadovaya there was a building of the editorial office and the printing house of the daily political, economic and literary newspaper «Priazovsky Kray». Today this building houses the Factory of Coloured Printing.

Nikolsky by-street (Khalturinsky) is one of the oldest streets in Rostov: in the 18-th century there was the East border of Dolomanovsky post. In 1924 it was renamed after S.N. Khalturin, a Russian revolutionist. On its crossing with Bolshaya Sadovaya there is a wonderful building which has been recently restored and transformed into a bank office. This beautiful building was a generous present of the merchant Paramonov to a charming actress.

At the corner of Pochtovy by-street (Ostrovsky) there was Churilin’s factory producing macaronis. Behind it there was Churilin’s brewery. In 1910 both factories were among the largest enterprises of Rostov. Unfortunately, these buildings were destroyed. Nowadays this place is known for the building of the Teachers’ Training Institute of the South Federal University.

The crossing of Bolshaya Sadovaya Street and Taganrogsky Avenue (at the present time – Budennovsky Avenue) was always considered the central place of Rostov. Here we can see two tall houses which are called “the Gates to the City”.

The building of the present day Central Department Store was constructed in 1910. It was the property of a rich merchant Pustovoitov. Built in a style “modern”, it was considered one of the most remarkable buildings in Rostov. Even now it looks as a fairy castle and deserves being crowned with a big clock.

At this place we can see the Conservatoire named after Rakhmaninov, one of the higher educational establishments of Rostov.

Traditionally the richest merchants of Rostov lived in Bolshaya Sadovaya Street, while the nobility preferred Dmitrovskaya Street more (Shaumyana Street). We can have a look at the faces of the famous Rostov merchants at the beautiful modern building known as “Kupechesky Dvor”.

Soborny by-street was marked in the plan for the first time in 1811. It was named after the Cathedral which had been constructed in 1847 and it led to the Sobornaya Square, where a monument to Alexander II was erected. At the Sobornaya Square the military parades took place on the birthdays of the tsar and the tsarina. The most prominent buildings on it were the Post Office, built in 1897, and the house of a merchant Velikanov. Soborny by-street at its other end faced the city Park the entrance to which was paid.

In front of the Cathedral at the market square there is a monument to Metropolitan Dmitry Rostovsky. Metropolitan Dmitry Rostovsky had never been to Rostov. He had died 50 years before his name was given to a new fortress which was constructed on the bank of the river Don.

Walking along the Soborny by-street to Bolshaya Sadovaya Street we will see a beautiful park. At the beginning of the 20-th century it was surrounded with a cast-iron fence with a massive gate. It was very popular among the inhabitants of Rostov. The entrance into it was paid. Nowadays The Gorky Park is also one of the most favourite places of rest and entertainment.

Between Taganrogsky (Budennovsky) Avenue and Bolshoy (Voroshilovsky) Avenue Bolshaya Sadovaya looked very nice. It was paved with stone bricks and carefully watered on hot summer days. In 1914 this part of Bolshaya Sadovaya was laid with asphalt. By the way the Rostov Duma invited an experienced instructor from Greece to supervise the work.

We can see a four-storeyed building of the Town Council or Duma. It was built in 1899 after the design of the professor of architecture Pomerantsev. At present the City Administration (Municipality) owns this building.

In Rostov there is another beautiful building constructed after Pomerantsev’s design – that is the present day «Yоlki-palki» restaurant. It was built in 1883. The owner of the house was a rich merchant Gench-Ogluev. By the way, Pomerantsev was a well-known Russian architect. The most remarkable work done by him is the building of GUM in Moscow.

On the opposite side of the street there was the first Rostov cinema house. Its owner was a merchant Schtremer. Today there is a modern cafe in the building.

The present day House of the Youth’s Creativity was built at the beginning of the 20-th century for the Volga-Kama Commercial Bank. It had been the most beautiful bank building in Rostov until the State Bank building was constructed.

In this part of Bolshaya Sadovaya there were a number of banks and best hotels – the Grand Hotel (it burnt down in 1911), Bolshaya Moskovskaya, San-Remo, Severnaya, etc. Nowadays only Moskovskaya Hotel resembles this glorious time.

At the corner of Bolshaya Sadovaya St. And Bolshoy Avenue there were two largest houses in the town. They belonged to the rich Armenian merchants Chernov and Melkonov-Yezekov. They say that once the merchants argued: who would build a better and a larger house. Both of them did their best. In the house of Melkonov-Yezekov there was the Rostov club where the local intelligentsia used to come for a rest. The house was destroyed during the Great Patriotic war (now the building houses a trading centre “Apeks”). In the place of Chernov’s house now there is the Economy University.

At one end of the Square of Soviets there is a building of Rostov Region Governour’s Office.

In the centre of the square there is a monument to the heroes of the civil war designed by Evgeniy Vuchetich. He was born in Rostov and studied here. His masterpiece – a Memorial to Motherland in Volgograd made the sculptor world famous.

At the place of the present day Square of Soviets there was once a New market. At the far end of it there was Alexander Nevsky Cathedral – being a slightly diminished replica of the Cathedral in St.Petersburg, it was one of the most beautiful cathedrals in Russia, it was commemorated to the salvation of Emperor Alexander II and his family from the train accident. Nowadays we can see a small memorial to this cathedral.

Bolshaya Sadovaya Street closed with the buildings of Nikolaevsky hospital (now the buildings of the Medical Institute are situated there).

Taganrogsky Avenue (Budennovsky)

Taganrogsky Avenue (Budennovsky) is one of the oldest streets in Rostov. It was even shown on the plan dated 1767. It was the main high-way of Rostov. All the cargo from the Rostov port was taken along this street. There were several bridges along Taganrogsky avenue: across Generalnaya balka near the brewery «Yuzhnaya Bavaria» (the brewery was built by a merchant Shartan in 1874 who sold it to the German company “Stuken and Co”) and across Skobelevskaya street (Krasnoarmeyskaya). Side by side with it there was the Asmolov’s Theatre. This building is now in the process of serious reconstruction. Further on, beyond Pushkin Street (Sennaya), there was the Kushnaryov’s tobacco factory. Near it the theatre-circus belonging to a merchant Mashonkina was located. Not far from it there was the territory of the fire station which was of great necessity for the town because fires were a common thing for Rostov. At the crossway of Taganrogsky Avenue and Skobelevskaya Street (Krasnoarmeiskaya) there was another tobacco factory, belonging to the brothers Aslanidi, the Turkish businessmen. As Taganrogsky Avenue was the main highway of the town it was well organized.

Bolshoy Avenue (Voroshilovsky)

Bolshoy Avenue (Voroshilovsky) was a twin-brother of Taganrogsky avenue, but at first it stretched only as far as Sennoy market (Gorky Street). There are not many old buildings in Bolshoy avenue now. The oldest house in it was built in 1875. As a hundred years before it houses a gymnasium now (French lyceum N 45). A beautiful building not far from it (house N 33) was constructed by Yakunin in 1887, now a music school named after a composer Ippolitov-Ivanov is located in it.

Kuznetskaya Street (Pushkinskaya)

Kuznetskaya Street (Pushkinskaya) was shown for the first time on the town’s plan in 1870. When you walk along this beautiful street now it is difficult to imagine that in the 40-s of the 19-th century it was a suburb of Rostov. Its initial name is explained by the fact that only very poor people, workers and blacksmiths settled in it. In 1885 it was named after the famous Russian poet. Alexander Pushkin visited Rostov twice and lived for some days with the family of general Raevsky. Pushkinskaya Street was paved and electrified only after 1904. The merchants built their houses in this street: at the corner of it and Taganrogsky avenue the house of a merchant Kushnarev was built and across the street – of his son-in-law Skordia; a merchant Suprounov brought his house from Italy and placed it in Pushkinskaya Street. The oldest buildings in this street (now these are houses N 57 and 59) were built in 1890 to provide people with cheep lodgings. A little bit later, in 1898 a beautiful building near Bolshoy avenue was constructed by an architect Doroshenko. It was a property of merchant Dombrovsky. Now the Museum of Fine Arts, decorating the whole street, is located in it. The majority of the buildings were constructed in the style «modern»: a house of the Dutch consul (N 116) was built in 1900 by an architect Lyubimov; a house of the merchants Mlatsaninovs (N 65) which was constructed in 1902. The house of the Austrian consul (N 75) contains elements of Roman architecture. The building of the University Library (N 148) was built in 1912 by an architect Eberg for the famous merchant Paramonov. This building is one of the best architectural monuments in Rostov. It is interesting that in 1930 the Rostov Local Lore Museum rented this building and the stuffed mammoth occupied one of the halls.

Sennaya Street (Maxim Gorky St.)

Sennaya Street (Maxim Gorky St.) was called so due to the Sennoy market (i.e. a hay market), situated between Nikolaevsky, Maliy and Gymnazicheskaya streets (now Semashko, Chekhov St. and the street named after the Greek town Volos). It was the street of working people and the most prominent house in it was the private women’s gymnasium belonging to Berberov which was situated at the corner of Pochtovy by-street (Ostrovsky) – now it is one of the buildings of the Teachers’ Training Institute. On the way to Soborny by-street there was a railway college and the boys’ gymnasium belonging to Stepanov (now the English gymnasium N 36). Sennaya street was renamed several times: into Turgenevskaya, into Romanovskaya and in 1936 into Gorky street in honour of the famous Russian writer who visited our town three times.

The first town-transport – a tram – ran along Bolshaya Sadovaya St. till the border between Rostov and Nakhichevan which was marked by special columns; in 1902 Nakhichevan also acquired its tram. There were no settlements on the border because this area was traditionally a waste-land as the guns of St.Dmitry Rostovsky Fortress could shoot as far as it. In 1880 by the decision of Nakhichevan Duma the park named after the tsar Alexander II was laid there. Annually the Armenians came to this park on the 23-d of April to choose their future brides, because only on this day and at this place women could open their faces. After the Great Patriotic War the park got a new name – of a pioneer-hero Vitya Cherevichkin who had been killed by the fascists for rendering assistance to the partisans. On the territory of the former border the Drama Theatre named after Maxim Gorky was constructed in 1934-1935 and opposite it one can see a magnificent memorial in honour of the 40-th anniversary of the Soviet people’s Victory in the Great Patriotic war. It was designed by the architect N. Milovidov and a sculptor Y. Rukavishnikov.

The names of many streets reflect the history of our city. Suvorov Street was named so in honour of the great Russian general, the generalissimo of the Russian army A.V. Suvorov who had visited the St. Dmitry Rostovsky Fortress more than once and lived there with his family in 1783-1784. Budennovsky avenue got its name after the Don hero, Marshal of the Soviet Union S.M. Budenny. In January 1920 during the historic days of liberation of Rostov from the white guards the 1-st Mounted Army (under the command of S.M. Budenny) played a decisive role in the rout of the enemy. In April, 1966 the monument to Budenny was erected by a sculptor Yevgeny Vuchetich. By the way Vuchetich, the talented sculptor of the famous monument to Motherland in Volgograd, was a Rostovite and decorated his native city with a magnificent monument to the heroes of the Civil War at the Square of Soviets.

Many other famous people were born or visited Rostov and we revere them naming the streets in their honour. It is a real pleasure to stroll along the central part of the city and to read the pages of history, to look into the eyes of the old Rostov houses.

(В тексте использованы материалы Деревянко Р.Я.

Люби и знай свой родной край. – Ростов-н/Д, 1991.)