Kirzhach, a Town on the Stromynka Road

10 points4 km4 hours

The quiet, cozy town of Kirzhach has a rich history that goes back to St. Sergius of Radonezh. Its convenient location on the Stromynka Road helped all sorts of crafts and a lively trade to flourish here. We invite you to get to know the place better. Walk through the monastery founded by one of Russia's most famous saints, see the old silk mills and learn about an unexpected link between the poet Andrei Voznesensky and a town mayor who lived half a century before he was born.

Route author

Alexey Logunov

Things to do

📜 Learn the city's history
🌲🦋 Enjoy nature
🔍🖼️ Spot interesting details

Route points (10)

Trading Rows
🏟️ Architectural landmark · 📜 Historic site
Trading Rows
Points will be available after purchasing the route
Solovyov Merchants Square
📜 Historic site · ⚙️ Industrial site · 🌿 Public garden or park

Trading Rows in Kirzhach

Point on route “Kirzhach, a Town on the Stromynka Road”

Point 1

Trading Rows

🏟️ Architectural landmark • 📜 Historic site

Gagarin Street

Gagarin Street, the town's main street, used to be known as Dvoryanskaya (“Nobles' Street”) and later as Bolshaya Moskovskaya (“Great Moscow Street”). It was called Dvoryanskaya because members of the nobility settled here, along with wealthy merchants. That makes sense: property on a street near the monastery and the central square was very prestigious and not everyone could afford it. The name Bolshaya Moskovskaya appeared in the 18th century, as Kirzhach grew into a trading center. The street was part of the old Stromynka Road leading to Moscow. It was called “Great” not so much because it was the widest and busiest as because of its status: back then the key establishments, inns, taverns and shops, were concentrated along it.

Trading Rows

Originally there were two complexes of trading rows, the “Great” and the “Small.” The Small Trading Rows were demolished in the 1940s and 1950s, and the district House of Culture, which you can see opposite, was built in their place. The Great Trading Rows have survived to this day, though in truncated form: in 1963, 6 of their roughly 30 arches were torn down and replaced by a general goods store. Old-timers know it as the “Glass Box” or the “Haberdashery”; today it's called Merkury. The trading rows still serve their original purpose, with all kinds of shops, from groceries to cell phone stores.

Doubts About the Construction Date

The trading rows hold an intriguing mystery: it isn't clear when they were built. The official plaque on the facade says the 1850s, and most historical sources agree. But old photographs show that they weren't there in 1905 and had appeared by the 1920s. So some local historians believe the rows were built in the early 20th century. How could that be? Who knows. Perhaps the photo was taken from a misleading angle, or perhaps the trading rows were originally wooden and were torn down during that period.