Georgiyevsk

Georgiyevsk, city (1989 pop. 63,000), SE European Russia, in the northern foothills of the Caucasus. It is an agricultural center with some industry. It was founded (1777) as a Russian fortress. The agreement by which Georgia became a vassal of Russia was signed at Georgiyevsk in 1873.

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Georgiyevsk

Georgiyevsk (Гео́ргиевск) is a historical town in Stavropol Krai, Russia, situated in the Forecaucasus on submontane tableland on the right bank of the Podkumok River (the tributary of Kuma River) 210 km southeast of Stavropol. It is the administrative center of Georgiyevsky District.

The town of Georgiyevsk was founded in 1777 as a fortress and granted town status in 1786.

Georgiyevsk is a railway junction with connections to Mineralnye Vody, Prokhladny, Budyonnovsk, and Nezlobnaya. The Georgiyevsk MSA is the second-largest of the MSA's of the Caucasus Mineral Waters region, which is a conurbation with 1.1 million inhabitants in the center of the North Caucasus).

Historical population

The town's population is 70,200 persons according to a 2004 estimate. Prior population statistics are:

1897 Census: 11,000;
1914 Census: 21,200;
1939 Census: 31,600;
1959 Census: 35,100;
1970 est.: 44,000;
1979 Census: 53,600;
1989 Census: 62,926;
2002 Census: 70,575.

History

The town was founded in September 1777 as St. George fortress on the Azov-Mozdok defense line. In 1783, a treaty between the Russian Empire and Georgia was signed making Georgian king Erekle II a subject of Russia. After 1785, Georgiyevsk grew considerably. After 1802, it was the center of a Caucasian guberniya. The early 19th century marked a peak in Georgiyevsk's influence as a trading center. Starting in 1822 the town's influence began to wane.

Well-known Russians who visited Georgiyevsk include: Alexander Pushkin, Mikhail Lermontov, Leo Tolstoy, Maxim Gorky, and Emperor Alexander II. Generals Nikolay Raevsky and Alexey Yermolov lived in the town.

After 1868, Georgiyevsk was a small town in the Tersk guberniya. In 1875, a railway station was built six kilometers away in Nezlobnaya. This became a new beginning in town's development. In 1894, the first blacksmith works was founded. This was the beginning of "ArZiL", the biggest enterprise in the town. In 1900, a slaughter house and oil mill were founded. In the 1920s, Georgiyevsk became a big industrial and trade center of the Predkavkazye (the central part of the North Caucasus),

During World War II, Georgiyevsk was under German occupation from August 9, 1942 until January 10, 1943. After the war, Georgiyevsk became the largest center of machine construction in Stavropol Krai.

Industry

Today, Georgiyevsk is one the largest industrial towns in the area with an accessory plant, repair and engineering works, nail works, semiconductor plant, acoustical and insulation material works, brickworks, two asphalt refineries, garment, shoe and fur plants, and a number of food processing facilities.

Town planning

Georgiyevsk has right-angled planning in the town center—a legacy of the fortress. The old town center was in the high bank on the Podkumok River near the Nikolskaya church—the oldest Orthodox church in Stavropol Krai—and a monument of wooden architecture of the 18th century.

The modern town center was built at the beginning of the 20th century around the fair square. The best examples of architecture of that period are the Old City Hall, the former Hotel "Louvre", the former Hotel "London", and Public Secondary schools #1 and #3. First enterprises were built at that time to the north of the town center. In the 1920s and 1930s, the area near the railway station was built out. After the World War II, Georgiyevsk grew quickly in the western residential areas and northern industrial areas. From the 1970s to the 1990s, several multistoried blocks were built in the southwest of the town. Today, the main part of Georgiyevsk is an area of owner-occupied dwellings. Multistoried buildings are situated in the central part of the town and in the "Beryozka" microdistrict. The town has three industrial areas, the largest of which is to the north of the town.

One of the local attraction is the Georgiyevsk Skyscraper, a twelve-story building, with views of Georgiyevsk, the Stavropol steppe, and Caucasus Mountains.

Social development

Georgiyevsk is an important educational center, with nine secondary schools, five vocational school, and fifteen universities and universities' satellite campuses with more than 20,000 students. It also has a Palace of Culture with a public theater, a casino, a museum, parks, Iodine-bromine mineral waters, and several churches.

Public transport

Public transport consists mainly of marshrutkas, operating from 5:30 to midnight.

The railway station offers rail access to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Minsk, Krasnodar, Rostov-on-Don, Grozny, and Vladikavkaz.

Communications

All three Russian national cellular networks (MTS, Beeline, and [Megafon) operate in the town. The post office is located near the bus station.

Tourism

In the corner of Victory Square and Pyatigorskaya street is the Old City Hall, which has a bell tower from the 20th century. In the other corner of the square, opposite the Central Drugstore, stands the Monument for International Friendship. This is the beginning of Golovinsky boulevard. Tykhe road is very short and ends at the Eternal Flame on Oktyabrskya street.

On the Old Boulevard, visitors can see the Youth Palace, located in the building of the Georgiyevsk City Bank, the best example of the modern architecture in the town. There are some cafés and restaurant on the boulevard with building of different ages and achitectural styles. The Old Boulevard leads to the Central Town Park. It is rather small but not long ago it was reconstructed and now has several side-shows.

The New Boulevard leads to the historical center of the town at Lermontov street. On the left side, there is a town museum in a building known as Dara. It was built at the beginning of 20th century. The owner was the producer of the first amateur theater in the town. On the right side is the mansion of Tumasov with lions of the top of the gates and the huge Palace of Culture. The Palace is now a drama theater but was once a town assembly hall.

At the end of the New Boulevard is Stela, a twenty-meter monument to mark the 200th anniversary of signing of the Treaty of Georgievsk. Until the 1930s, the Voznesensky Cathedral, which was similar to the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow, stood here.

Behind the Stela is Oktyabrskaya street through Old Georgiyevsk. The street runs high over the Podkumok river, from where there are views of the Caucasus Mountains from Mount Kazbek to Mount Elbrus, the Podkumok forest and the lower part of the town. A short distance away is the most important monument in Georgiyevsk, the Nikolskaya church, which was carried to the St. George fortress from the Khopyor River in the 1780s. This is the only church not demolished by the Soviet authorities. This is the old town center, the location of the St. George fortress.

Other areas Georgiyevsk have little of interest for tourists. Local souvenirs include "Georgiyevskaya krepost", a local wine. Georgiyevsk is one of the biggest in Russia centers for items made from fur, and many items are available in the central market.

On the way to Pyatigorsk there are old Cossacks stanitsas—Nezlobnaya, Lysogorskaya, and Goryachevodsk (with one of the biggest markets in Russia). In the center of Lysogorskaya is situated a very beautiful wooden church of Rozhdestva Presvyatoy Bogoroditsy (The Birth of the Blessed Virgin), built in 1886.