In the Trans-Baikal Territory there is a village with a unique name - Nerchinsky Plant. This is the administrative center of the Nerchinsk-Zavodsky district, located on the left bank of the Altachi River. As the locals themselves joke - this is literally the outskirts of Russia, it is much closer to the Chinese neighbors than to the settlements of our country.
a brief description of
The climate here is sharply continental, there are even monsoons. In January, atmospheric temperature can reach –23 ° , while in July it rarely rises above +9 ° .
As of the beginning of last year, 2528 people lived in the village of Nerchinsky Zavod Zabaykalsky Krai. And almost 100 years ago, in 1913, in the settlement there were 5 thousand souls. The Orthodox population lives here mainly, there are a couple of Jewish families and Mohammedans.
How it all began
There is a theory that Siberia and the Far East have mastered exclusively for silver. Indeed, in ancient times, money was really melted from precious metals. And all the foreigners who arrived were deprived of silver coins and smelted into their own currency.
Therefore, each expedition that went beyond the Urals was given a special order - to find a silver deposit. And at some point, explorers who were able to get to Lake Baikal found that there was indeed this precious metal in the Daurian land. Daurian land was the territory from Baikal to the Amur.
In 1676, on the territory of the modern village of Nerchinsky Zavod, two natives, Aranzh and Mani, discovered a mountain with silver, the extraction of which was previously engaged by the Mongols. Thus, the first precious metal deposit was found, which gave impetus to the development of the empire.
Plant
In 1704, a plant was already opened - the first in Russia that melted silver. Initially, it was called Argun. And only after 15 years they renamed, and the village of Nerchinsky Plant rapidly developed. The enterprise employed not only workers and peasants, but also exiles.
From 1731 to 1733 the plant did not work, in 1759 it was moved upstream of the Altach river. In 1773, a second factory was erected on the opposite side of the river.
In 1853, the depleted deposit was abandoned, the equipment was outdated, the silver production was closed. A wave of gold mining has begun.
Exiles
The Nerchinsk penal servitude is not only the Trans-Baikal estate of the imperial family, but also part of the penitentiary system. It was here that the convicts of the Russian Empire were serving their sentences. Officially, the territory became the property of the Cabinet of His Majesty in 1787. The district included several eastern counties of the Transbaikal province:
- Nerchinsky;
- Nerchinsk-Zavodsky;
- Chitinsky;
- Akshinsky.
Already in the middle of the XIX century a whole system of prisons was formed in the district. Prisoners worked in silver deposits and factories. Over time, political prisoners have already begun to exile Nerchinsk penal servitude. One of the first was the Decembrists: Sukhinov I., Volkonsky S. and Mozalevsky A. E. Prisoners under criminal and political articles were held in very harsh conditions, and most importantly, together.
At the same time, educated and intelligent people who graduated from leading Russian universities work in the Nerchinsky Zavod settlement itself. For example, the famous doctors Kashin M.I. and Bek E.V. worked in the village, who were engaged in the study of endemic osteoarticular disease. But in the village itself there was only a transit prison. Of this, prisoners were distributed in hard labor prisons; they worked in mines, mainly in Blagodatsky and Zerentuy.
After 1917, all political prisoners were released, and the Nerchinsk penal servitude was completely eliminated.
Modern village
After the plant was closed, the villagers had to completely reorient themselves, the economy in the settlement became agrarian. And in 1926, the district authorities were located in the village.
Several interesting architectural monuments have been preserved in the village. Many who have visited this place leave a memory photo of the Nerchinsky Plant of the Transbaikal Territory, the Kandinsky house. This building was erected at the beginning of the XVIII century, decorated in the style of classicism. The estate is also known for the fact that the wives of exiled Decembrists stayed here.
In addition, photos of the village of Nerchinsky Zavod of the Transbaikal Territory look great, where the houses of famous merchants: Petushkin, Bogomyagkov and Bagashev are captured. Other well-known names are also associated with the village: veterinarian P. Veslopolov, journalist Sedykh K. F., who is the creator of the first public library in the village.