Nizhny Tagil is one of the largest cities in the Sverdlovsk region. The history of its foundation and development is closely connected with the natural resources of the region, as well as the Demidov family, the largest mining owners in Russia in the 18th century.
Did you know? The history of Nizhny Tagil began in 1696, when copper ore deposits were found here. And the founding date of the city is considered to be October 19, 1722 - the smelting of the first batch of cast iron.
Sights of Nizhny Tagil with photos and descriptions
Nizhny Tagil is a real pearl of the Urals and the birthplace of a unique tray craft. Most of the attractions of this industrial city are related to metallurgy and mining .
Architecture
Nizhny Tagil is very rich in unique architecture. Most of the buildings erected at the end of the 18th and beginning of the 19th centuries were made in the classicist style. With the development of the city in the 19th century, features of Art Nouveau and Russian-Byzantine style appeared in its buildings. All this diversity combined with the development of the 1930s. created a unique architectural ensemble that amazes tourists today.
- The Watchtower is one of the city's best attractions and a Russian cultural heritage site. It was erected on Lisya Mountain at the beginning of the 19th century as part of the fire protection system of Nizhny Tagil. More romantic versions of the origin of the tower claim that it was built by N. N. Demidov in honor of the victory over Napoleon or as a symbol of the memory of the wife of this industrial magnate who died in 1818.
- The Demidov estate is an architectural complex erected in 1833 according to the design of A.P. Chebotarev. The facade of the two-story buildings is made in the style of late classicism, and its central part is decorated with columns and stucco. Today, these buildings house the exposition of the Mining Ural Museum.
- The real school building is a monument of culture and history of the Sverdlovsk region. The building was erected in 1904 for the needs of an educational institution in which children of workers of the Demidov plant studied mining. Today, one of the city's art museums is located here.
- The Drama Theater is a majestic building in the Stalinist Empire style in the center of Nizhny Tagil. It was erected in 1955 and decorated with sculptures of “Labor”, “Science” and “Art” by the famous sculptor M. Manizer.
Watch tower
Religious buildings
Pre-revolutionary Nizhny Tagil was very rich in religious buildings of different religions. Unfortunately, in the 1930s, many unique churches were partially or completely destroyed. Today, the surviving temples are being actively restored, and new ones are being built in place of the destroyed landmarks.
- The Church of the Ascension is the main temple of the Sorrowful Monastery. This majestic red brick cathedral was built at the beginning of the 20th century by the architect E. I. Artemov in the pseudo-Russian style. In 1923 the parish was closed. The church was revived again only in the 1990s, and today services are held here.
- The Temple of the Icon of the Mother of God is a church built in the 1860s. at the expense of the merchant I.I. Sergeev according to the will of his father. This single-altar church, intended for cemetery services, was built in the shape of a quadrangle with beveled corners and a small dome. Today it belongs to the complex of the Sorrowful Convent.
- Church of Alexander Nevsky - erected from 1862 to 1877. in gratitude from local residents for the abolition of serfdom. The five-domed temple in the Russian-Byzantine style is located on Veresovaya Mountain. Since 1940 it has been closed and used as warehouses. Today the church has been completely restored, services are held there, a gymnasium and a Sunday school operate there.
- Church of the Life-Giving Trinity - this temple was built in the 19th century on the site of a chapel taken from the Old Believers who worked at the Demidov factories. In the 1930s the building was transferred for the needs of the national economy, and it was badly damaged. Since 1991, the building was returned to the fold of the church, and after reconstruction in 2012, an episcopal see settled here.
Ascension Church
Museums
Nizhny Tagil has quite a large number of museums and exhibitions that will introduce travelers in detail to its history and traditional crafts. In addition, this city is widely represented by house-museums in which famous inventors and industrial magnates lived.
- The plant-museum of the history of mining equipment is the only open-air museum of its kind in the world. It was founded after the closure in 1987 of the iron smelter, built by the Demidov dynasty back in 1925. The exhibitions, which include various workshops, rolling stock, a forge and even an equestrian area, are located on an area of 30 hectares.
Important! It is prohibited to move around the territory of the museum-factory without a guide, as many buildings are in disrepair.
- The Museum of Armored Vehicles is part of the Uralvagon plant museum complex. Its collections, divided into eight exhibitions, introduce visitors to the history of the creation and development of armored vehicles. Of greatest interest to tourists is the exhibition hall on the ground floor, which houses models of serial combat vehicles.
- The Museum of the History of Tray Crafts is one of the best institutions of the Gornozavodskoy Ural Museum-Reserve. Its funds are located in the wooden house of the Khudoyarov . Nizhny Tagil is the birthplace of painted trays, which became known as works of art in the 19th century.
Other museums of Nizhny Tagil:
- Museum of Nature and Environment;
- art Museum;
- museum "Demidovskaya Dacha";
- Museum "The Lord's House";
- Cherepanovs' house-museum.
Natural attractions
Ural Mountains attract the most attention of tourists .
- Mount Grace is part of the Ural ridge. This object, whose name comes from the Greek translation of the name of Empress Anna, is a true symbol of man’s consumer attitude towards nature. Of the three peaks, only the one with no ore remains. According to legend, the secret of minerals in the depths of the mountain was revealed to the prospectors by Vogul Stepan Chumpin, who was burned alive by his fellow tribesmen for this betrayal.
- Ermak Hill is a natural monument in the Sverdlovsk region. The height of this mountain reaches 298 meters, and at its top there is a vertical shaft dug. According to legend, countless treasures captured in Siberia by Ermak are hidden here.
- Naked Stone Mountain is part of the Merry Mountains range. On its southern slope, traces of Mesolithic people and their stone tools were discovered. From the top of this mountain there is a magnificent panoramic view of Nizhny Tagil.
- Fox Mountain is the most recognizable symbol in the center of Nizhny Tagil. At its top, a monument to the cultural heritage of Russia was erected - a watchtower.
Fox Mountain
Deer farm
A little further on, completely unexpectedly, there is a deer farm. The places there are remote, surrounded by sparsely populated taiga. Where is she here from? For what? Nevertheless:
Entertainment is feeding deer with bread, it’s very funny:
We talked with the animals and moved on.
What to see in Nizhny Tagil in 1 day
If you are in Nizhny Tagil for just one day, you will need a good excursion plan to see all the main attractions of this city. It is best to organize your trip in this order:
- Start your walk with the main attraction of the city - the Demidov plant .
- Next, climb Fox Mountain and admire the city from its top.
- Then be sure to visit the exhibitions of the Cherepanovs' house-museum . Next to it you will also find the steam locomotive of these famous engineers.
- Next on your list will be the Museum of Life and Crafts , as well as the Museum of Tray Crafts. They are located on Tagilskaya Street.
- Complete the tour with one of the oldest churches in the city - the Alexander Nevsky Church .
In the evening, after a walk around Nizhny Tagil, it is best to relax in the Bondina city park .
Geography
The city is located on the eastern slope of the Ural Mountains, 20-25 km from the conventional border of Europe and Asia at an altitude of 200 m above sea level. The western border of the city runs along the Merry Mountains mountain range of the Urals.
The area of the city of Nizhny Tagil is 298.47 km². The area of the urban district (since April 1, 2008, after the inclusion of 22 towns, villages and villages that voted in a referendum to join) is 4108 km².
To the west of the city lies the main watershed of the Ural Range with individual hills and mountain ranges stretching from north to south. This part of the Main Ural Range is called the Merry Mountains. The average height of the mountains is 400-500 meters, and only a few peaks rise above 700 m - Mount Belaya (712 m), Starik-Kamen (755 m), Shirokaya (746 m). Steep, steep stone peaks - “shikhans”, crowned with rocks - “remnants”, create a unique landscape of the Middle Urals. Right within the city limits there are the Bear-Kamen, Vysokaya mountains with a quarry on the northern slope, Dolgaya with a ski jump complex on the eastern slope, Goly Kamen, Tselovalnikova, Palyonaya, Pikhtovye Mountains, the main symbol of the city, Fox Mountain with a watchtower on the top. To the east of the city, the relief gradually levels out and turns into the West Siberian Lowland.
There are no powerful waterways in the area. The main river, Tagil, with numerous tributaries, flows into the Tura River of the Ob-Irtysh basin. The Tagil pond stretches for 16 km, its greatest width is 1.5 km, and its depth is up to 12 meters. The second big river of Nizhny Tagil is the Vyya. Within the city limits, it is artificially expanded and, like Tagil, is a long elongated pond - Vyisky Pond. Within the city, in the Lebyazhka area, the Vyya flows into the Tagil.
In addition to Tagil and Vyya, 13 rivers and streams flow within the city: Barancha, Rush, Bolshaya Kushva, Malaya Kushva, Leba, Vatikha, Lebyazhka, Vyazovka, Ezhovaya, Galyanka, Rudyanka, Cheremshanka, Prikazchitsa, Olkhovka, Chernaya Katabka.
To this day, the city uses a water supply system developed by the Demidovs.
Climate
Nizhny Tagil is located in a zone of temperate continental climate with characteristic sharp variability of weather conditions and well-defined seasons. The average annual air temperature in Nizhny Tagil is +1.7 °C, the absolute maximum is +37 °C, the absolute minimum is −52 °C.
- Average annual air temperature: 1.7 °C
- Relative humidity: 75.1%
- Average wind speed: 2.5 m/s
Where you can go in Nizhny Tagil with a child
Despite the fact that Nizhny Tagil is a typical industrial city, its entertainment sector for children is quite well developed. Tourists who come here with a child will most like:
- children's quests "EVENT";
- trampolines in entertainment;
- laser tag at the STELS club;
- petting zoo;
- Zoo "GreenPoll" in the village of Nikolo-Pavlovskoye;
- deer farm.
For teenagers in Nizhny Tagil, it will be interesting to play paintball at the Strategy club or visit one of the many bowling centers in this city.
Perhaps readers can add to the list of the best places for tourists with children in Nizhny Tagil? Be sure to leave your options in the comments!
Ecology
Leadership in industry often comes at the price of environmental problems. At the beginning of 2021, Rospotrebnadzor ranked 12 cities participating in the federal project “Clean Air” based on a set of indicators and the severity of airborne risks, placing Nizhny Tagil in second place.
But at the same time, Nizhny Tagil is not among the ten dirtiest cities in Russia. Already in 2003, the city was not included in the list of the 35 dirtiest cities in Russia.
Among the substances emitted into the atmosphere by the five largest industrial enterprises, carbon monoxide ranks first. This is a low-hazard class that is obtained by burning organic material such as coal, wood, paper, oil, gasoline. At elevated concentrations it causes headache, weakness, insomnia and increased fatigue.
In second place is nitrogen dioxide, which has a third class of hazard. Because of its brown color, it is called “fox tail.” It is a potential causative agent of pulmonary diseases.
In third place is sulfur dioxide, third class of danger. This is sulfur dioxide, which is formed during the combustion of coal and oil, in metallurgical industries, during the processing of sulfur-containing ores (sulfides), and during various chemical technological processes.
In addition to these examples, there are 57 more substances that pollute the city’s atmosphere. Residents report emissions of brown smoke, orange clouds of "emissions" and unpleasant odors.
Lenevskoye Reservoir
Another great place to stay:
As far as I understand, in most places the ground is rocky. This is how you decide to dig a toilet in your country house, and you won’t be able to do it without dynamite:
Locals actively use this. For example, here is a completely unexpected phenomenon for me: a paved road in the forest. You are driving through the forest and suddenly the paving stones begin to appear:
By the way, Largus took us to all the places in Nizhny Tagil (the car is based on Logan, also excellent):
But let's get back to our journey.
Taiga villages
The road leads through small towns and very old villages:
And there are many of them:
The villages are harsh and spacious:
I can't find any other words:
