[2] Urbanization of the City

The Neighborhood

In 1903 merchant Ivan Ivanovich Dernov invested in a plot of land at Tavricheskaia 25 (today 35), on the eastern side of the Tauride Gardens, in the Rozhdestvenskaia district north of Nevsky Prospect.

At the time of its purchase two wooden houses from the 1820s stood on the site, surrounded – as was typical for that time – by outbuildings and kitchen gardens. At the turn of the 20th century the Rozhdestvenskaia district consisted predominantly of such dwellings. This was a socially and economically less prosperous area than the Liteiny district on the other side of the Tauride Gardens.

The principal landmark in the area was the cupola of the Tauride Palace, built by Prince Potemkin in the 1780s in the north-east corner of the park. At the beginning of the 20th century art exhibitions were held in the palace, and in April 1906 the State Duma began its work there. For the Rozhdestvenskaia district this meant an accelerated transformation into a more urban environment.

PICTURE: Tauride Palace (Tavrichesky dvorets) and behind it the Tauride Gardens. The Tower in the upper left corner.