Kolyvan

Russia / Novosibirsk / Kolyvan /
 town, district center

Urban locality (an urban-type settlement) and the administrative center of Kolyvansky District of Novosibirsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Ob River 40 kilometers (25 mi) to the north of Novosibirsk. Population: 11,842 (2010 Census).
Until the 1890s, Kolyvan was the commercial center of the surrounding area. During the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway in the 1890s, there were plans to route the railroad through Kolyvan and Tomsk. However, Konstantin Garin-Mikhaylovsky, the engineer responsible for routing the railroad in the area, decided that a site at the village of Krivoshchyokovo, some 40 kilometers (25 mi) upstream from Kolyvan, would be much more suitable for bridge construction: that was the only spot within the area where both the river banks and river bed were of solid rock; besides, the Ob floodplain is the narrowest there as way. Despite the protests of Kolyvan and Tomsk merchants, Garin-Mikhailovsky's southern route was approved by Alexander III in 1892. The bridge was built at Krivoshchekovo; the new city of Novo-Nikolayevsk (later renamed Novosibirsk) arose around the bridge, and eventually became Siberia's largest city, meanwhile Kolyvan stagnated.
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   55°18'34"N   82°44'17"E
This article was last modified 2 years ago