Andreapol District Museum of Local Lore

The Andreapoli District Museum of Local History opened its doors for visitors on May 6, 1972. Its founder is considered to be a front-line teacher Eduard Shimkevich (10.01.1915 – 25.12.1990). The collections of the school historical study-museum, with love and genuine interest, gathered under his leadership by students (primarily members of the local history circle) formed the basis of the district museum. The creation of the museum, the design of its expositions was carried out with the direct assistance of the Andreapoli RK Komsomol (first secretary Racheev A.V.) and the Department of Culture under the Executive Committee of the District Council of People's Deputies (head Mikhailova A.N.). The initial stands of the exposition were devoted to such topics as the ancient past of our region, “the way from the Varangians to the Greeks”, the resort “Andreapolis Mineral Waters”, the formation of Soviet power in Andreapoli, countrymen – participants of the Great Patriotic War.

In the life of the museum there were periods of prosperity and decline. In the 1980s, his materials wandered from room to room; for several years they were stored in boxes stacked in the basement of secondary school No. 1. However, he continued to work actively. On May 18, 1984, the Ministry of Culture of the RSFSR awarded the honorary title “People’s Museum” to the public museum in Andreapol, Kalinin region (certificate No. 72 of 18.05.1984).

In 1988-1989, the city was actively preparing for the celebration of its anniversary - the date of the first written mention of the Dubna volost (the Dubna village is an integral part of modern Andreapole) in the Lithuanian metric (1489). At this time there is a real surge of local history work. The leadership of the district (First Secretary of the RK CPSU Vorobyov A.I., Chairman of the Executive Committee Petrov V.N.) paid serious attention to the development of the holiday program. Among other things, one of the main issues for which an immediate solution was required was the question of re-establishing a local history museum in the city. On the territory adjacent to secondary school No. 1, a wooden one-storey building was built in the shortest possible time, where the museum collections were again located. By decision No. 181 of 28.09.1989, the museum premises were taken on the balance of the district Department of Culture (head of the Department Ilyina M.I.).

From 1989 to 1993, the heads of the Andreapoli Museum of Local History, which continued to remain public, were E. E. Shimkevich, L. T. Demizyuk, M. G. Smorodina. For some time it housed the district Council of veterans of war and labor.