Sterlitamak, the most beautiful city in Bashkortostan, became home to 267,000 people living here. The city of great chemistry is located in a picturesque place, on the left bank of the White River, where Sterlya and Ashkadar flow into it. The name of the city comes from two words: Sterlya river on which the city is located and "tamak" - which in Bashkir means "throat" or "mouth". Near the city there are four high mountains called Shihans. Fossilized reefs are a wonderful place for tourists and athletes. The depths of the mountains contain deposits of stone salt and limestone raw materials for soda, cement, slate and other chemical products produced by the city's industry. Gypsum, sand and clay are the backbone of the city’s construction industry.
In April 1735, a fortress was laid at the mouth of the Ory River, which later became the city of Orenburg. Postal stations connecting Ufa and Orenburg were also laid, located at a distance of one day crossing from each other (20-30 versts). One of these stations was the Ashkadar post pit. At the beginning of 1765, a decision was made to build a salt pier from which salt was supposed to be delivered to the central regions of Russia. So Ashkadar pit became Ashkadar pier. In August 1766, the pier was named Sterlitamak. However, the harsh winters, the small number of the local population, as well as the abuse of officials led to the fact that the sending of salt to other regions gradually came to naught.
During the Peasant War of 1773-1775 under the leadership of E. I. Pugachev, the pier was under the control of the rebels for five months. However, they were forced to retreat under the strong onslaught of government troops led by P. M. Golitsin. Pugachev's associate Khlopush burns the Sterlitamak salt pier and leaves it. After these events, the salt is shipped only from the restored Sterlitamak Wharf, which becomes the administrative center that oversees all salt supplies.
In 1781, a provincial reform was carried out in Bashkortostan, during which the Ufa governorship was approved, including the Ufa and Orenburg provinces. The Ufa province included 8 counties - Belebeevsky, Birsky, Bugulminsky, Menzelinsky, Sterlitamak, Ufa and Chelyabinsk. Sterlitamak becomes a city. June 8, 1782. Catherine II approved the coat of arms of the city: At the top of the shield is the coat of arms of Ufa (a running marten in a silver field, as a sign of such beasts of abundance). At the bottom are three floating silver geese in a deep field, as a sign of the great abundance of these birds.
In 1786, Sterlitamake had only 142 courtyards, a courthouse and a church, as well as several state buildings. The urban development plan was approved only in 1794. A church was built in the name of the Kazan Mother of God, a mosque and a prison. Gradually Sterlitamak grows, there are enterprises for the production of vodka and beer, leather production. At the end of the 18th century in the county already existed distillery landowner Levashov. At first, Sterlitamak resembles a village more than a city, but with the abolition of serfdom, a noticeable growth begins. In 1897, more than 15 thousand people lived here. In the 19th century, the development of numerous artisanal crafts of leather, pimokat, salotope, fasting, waxing, pottery began. By the end of the 19th century, alcohol and tanneries began to work, a flour mill, which was very large in scale at that time and had a mechanical engine with a capacity of 145 horsepower. About 60 workers were required to service this mill. On June 16, 1870, the Duma and Administration were opened in the city. Since 1895, the Sterlitamak-Ufa telegraph line began to operate.
At the end of the 19th century, the famous Bashkir poet and enlightener Mukhametsalim Umetbayev lived and worked in Sterlitamak. In 1910, the work of our countryman, the classic of Tatar literature G. G. Ibragimov “The fate of a Tatar woman” was first published. At the beginning of the 20th century, a women's gymnasium was opened, several higher elementary schools were also functioning, there were four-class male and two-class female schools, and a parish school.
In the years of the first Russian revolution, a social democratic group was formed in the city, playing a prominent role in the political life of the city and the district. On its initiative, the workers were disobeying the authorities, setting fire to the landlords’ estates, cutting state and landlord forests, seizing and dividing the lord’s bread. In 1905, a tanners strike was organized in the city, and in July 1914, mobilized soldiers with the support of local residents defeated the state wine warehouse and several shopping establishments. After the February Revolution, for a short time (November 1917 February 1918), the Sterlitamak Soviet nationalized the bank, telegraph, and major industrial enterprises of the city. The decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee of March 23, 1919 proclaimed the creation of the Bashkir Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic.
From 1919 to 1922 our city was the capital of the Bashkir ASSR.
In 1919, the first Bashkir theater was created here. One of the organizers of the theater was playwright and composer Khabibulla Ibragimov, who wrote in 1920-1921 the musical comedy "Bashmagim" ("Shoemaker"), which in March 1922 was first staged in Sterlitamak. In 1919, the newspaper, magazine and book publishing house Bashgosizdat began to work, and at the beginning of 1926 a Bashkir pedagogical college was created in the city. Since 1929, the city newspaper has been published with a circulation of 2.5 thousand copies.
Gradually, the work of the tanneries, sawmills and mills nationalized by the Bolsheviks was established. On the basis of three plants, a state tanning and sheepskin factory was created, sawmills merged into one timber plant. The launch of a small power plant in late 1922 was an important milestone in the formation of the new Sterlitamak.
In 1930, the City Council approved a plan for the development of Sterlitamak for the next 30 years until 1960. During this period, 24 thousand residents live in the city. A tuberculosis dispensary with a night sanatorium, a polyclinic is opened.
In 1930, the Sterlitamak district was formed. On its territory begins exploration of oil fields. In May 1932, the first deposit was opened near Ishimbay. This is how the second Baku is born.
In the pre-war years, the Sterlitamak industry also grew. A bakery, elevator, oxygen plant, fishing artels are being built. Construction of a mechanical repair plant of drilling equipment begins. The city houses the management of the Bashneft trust and its subsidiary enterprises.
The construction of the railway was also decided, and the first train arrived in the city on September 30, 1934. Since 1936, a regular bus service has been opened with Ufa, Orenburg and several other settlements.
By 1939, Sterlitamak had 10 power plants with a total capacity of 790 kilowatts. In 1932, radio appeared in the homes of citizens, and in 1936 the first sound film installation.
Much work was done to eliminate illiteracy among the adult population, the number of students increased markedly, professional pedagogical personnel were required. To this end, at the beginning of 1926, the Bashkir Pedagogical College was established in the city. Almost all school-age children were enrolled. By 1940, there were eighteen secondary, incomplete secondary and primary schools. In 1932, an oil technical school was opened, in 1935 a medical paramedic and obstetric school was opened. The network of libraries and the number of books in them is growing. There are 6 nurseries, 10 kindergartens and a nursing home.
On the streets of Mira, Soviet, Sadovaya, Sacco and Vanzetti and on the left bank of Sterley grew houses for oil workers. Two-storey brick buildings were built for many schools.
According to the All-Union census of 1939, 37,953 people lived in Sterlitamak.
The Great Patriotic War began. All summer on Sacco Street and Vanzetti went to the station, the townspeople who left for the front with a formidable, breathtaking song "Holy War". And by autumn, long trains with equipment of evacuated plants and factories begin to arrive in the city, thousands of people sent from the front lanes deep into the rear.
In a short time, many evacuated enterprises were accepted and placed in our city. Sterlitamak took soda and cement factories, the Baku factory "Red Proletary", the Odessa machine tool factory named after Lenin, the Moscow shoe factory. The dedicated work of many people made it possible to quickly and promptly launch these plants and establish production for the needs of the front. In December 1942, the Ishimbay CHPP gave industrial current to the enterprises of Sterlitamak.
The Book of Memory, published in 1975, reminds us of the price our countrymen had to pay to win the Great Patriotic War. In the book the names of the Heroes of the Soviet Union, who gave their lives for their Motherland: Avdoshkin Semyon Egorovich, Akhtyamov Hasan Badygeevich, Basmanov Gavriil Ivanovich, Berezhny Ivan Mikhailovich, Evstigneev Alexander Semenovich, Kovalsky Anton Filippovich, Kochetov Ivan Danilovich, Nagumanov Dalyagai Syevich, Sukhanov Nikolai Ivanovich, Pantelkin Anatoly Alexandrovich, Pulkina, Pulkinariy Grigolovitch, Kovalovy Grigolovy Mikhailovich. The city honors the memory of those who died in the name of Victory and treats veterans living now with respect. At the crossroads of Lenin and October Avenues, Khudaiberdin Street stands a monument to the Unknown Soldier. Every year the people of the city celebrate the Eternal Fire.
After the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945, the Bashproekt Institute developed a master plan for the development of Sterlitamak. It was envisaged to create a single urban area around the partially reconstructed historical center and a holistic architectural image of the city linked to natural conditions.
The city was divided into two residential areas West and East (location relative to the railway). Residential areas consisted of microdistricts located around the center of the district. However, residential development in the western district south of School Street was made only after 1960.
The territory was determined for the development of existing industries and the construction of new ones. In November 1951, the first tons of soda ash were obtained at the soda factory. In 1952, a cement plant was put into operation, in 1956 a slate plant. On September 30, 1957, the first stage of the Sterlitamak CHPP began to work and give current. In 1960, the synthetic rubber plant was started. Established in 1963 at the plant pilot production is now independent production of CJSC Sterlitamak petrochemical plant.
Until 1974, there was a large housing, cultural, household, communal and industrial construction in the city. In February 1946, the Russian Drama Theatre opened in the city. In 1958 the Teachers’ Institute was transformed into the Sterlitamak Pedagogical Institute. Since 1955, the city has been operating a training and consulting post of the All-Union Correspondence Polytechnic Institute.
In 1960, the first stage of the city PBX was put into operation, the gasification of the city began, the Salavat cinema was built. Since 1961, a trolleybus line has been available to citizens. In 1962, on the basis of the All-Union Correspondence Polytechnic Institute, an evening department of the general technical faculty of the Ufa Petroleum Institute was created, the first graduates of which left its walls in 1964. In 1971, the Institute will have a new building. Since 1966, the Iskra cinema has been at the service of citizens.
By the early 60s, a revision of the master plan for the construction of the city is required due to its significant growth. Two options for the development of the city were proposed. The first option provided for the growth of the city to the west due to the development of arable land in the district. The second option proposed the development of urban floodplain lands between Ashkadar and White. However, here it was necessary to wash the territory 1.5-2 meters to flood-free marks. Due to the need for careful attitude to agricultural land, with the aim of their preservation, the second variant of the city development was adopted with some changes.
The city was to develop to the east, developing lands adjacent to waterways and forests. The city was expected to grow to 220,000 people by 1980 (as of January 1, 1984, 237,900 people live in Sterlitamak). The building area should have doubled. A bypass road for freight transport was designed to take it outside the city. By 1991, Sterlitamak’s housing stock had reached 15.6 square meters per person. Houses, kindergartens, schools, shops, household services, polyclinics and children's hospitals were built.
Construction and development in Sterlitamak of the largest plants of chemistry and petrochemistry, machine tool and machine-building industry allows citizens to feel confidence in the future. At the service of citizens a garment factory, a leather and shoe combine, a distillery and brewery, a powerful construction industry. Every year, builders try to hand over at least 100,000 square meters of housing. With rising incomes, many people can afford to buy an apartment. Mortgage lending is in effect. The private sector is also being built.
The city’s telephony is proceeding at a good pace, today Sterlitamak is the most telephonic city in Bashkortostan. The development of cellular communication has made citizens more mobile. The appearance of computers in people’s homes and the ability to access the Internet allows you to communicate with people in many countries of the world, learn a lot of new things without leaving home or an Internet club.
The city also cares about the health of its residents. New hospitals are being built, a maternity hospital with 100 beds is being built. Every summer, thousands of children rest and improve their health at the expense of the city and the social fund of enterprises in children's health camps and sanatoriums. Work in the city and commercial centers of aesthetic medicine, ophthalmic center, dental offices.
Graduates of our schools have a place to study. The doors of the Sterlitamak Pedagogical Academy, a branch of the Ural State Academy of Physical Culture, branches of the Ufa Oil and Bashkir State Universities, the All-Russian Correspondence Financial and Economic Institute are open for them. A wide range of professions are provided by city technical schools and schools, paid higher educational institutions work in the city.
After a working or school day, citizens can spend their time in cinemas, theaters, Palaces of Culture, Sports Palaces, visit many interesting sections and clubs. It offers an extensive network of city libraries, where you can read both classical works and the latest novelties of the book market.
Priority tasks in the development of the city for the Administration are the support of health care, motherhood and childhood, social protection and employment of the population, support for small and medium-sized businesses, development of housing construction.
Much attention is paid to the development of physical education and sports. The enterprises of the city provide material support for such sports as volleyball, football, basketball, etc. Also, considerable attention is paid to sports and mass work in educational institutions. Among our countrymen there are winners of major international competitions, masters of sports of international class. With the support of the city leadership and large enterprises, a powerful sports base has been created in Sterlitamak, including two sports complexes with swimming pools, four stadiums, a ski jump, several dozen sports and gyms, an air sports club, and an urban tourist center. Three children and youth sports schools, sports sections in various sports are successfully working. It is no coincidence that their pupils show excellent results in such sports as weightlifting, judo, athletics and gymnastics.
Despite the difficult economic conditions of modern Russia, Sterlitamak remains one of the most comfortable and successfully developing cities. This is the merit of successful cooperation between the municipal leadership and large city-forming enterprises, as well as hard-working, educated and cultural citizens. Sterlitamak is built, updated and well every year, warmed by the love of its inhabitants.
