Street to Street: A Journey into the Past

Gastello street ... Now no one has any questions why they are called so. Practically in all cities of Belarus there are such streets that are connected with the events that took place in our country in the last century. But every city has its own destiny, every street has its own story...

You can hardly imagine how Smorgon looked like 100 years ago. And even more how it looked like 400 years ago when it was the part of the Zenovich possessions, later of the Radziwills. Some idea of it is given to us by inventories that have come down to our of time. Under Zenovichi Smorgon was a small place that adjoined master's residence. In 1622, in the center of the town there was a market from which 5 streets departed: Vilenskaya (now Sovetskaya Str.), Kostelnaya (Gastello Str.), Krevskaya (Gagarina Str.), Skomoroshya (Tankistov Str.), Dvornaya (Lenina Str. and part of St. Krasnoarmeyskaya). It is easy to guess that the Zenovich estate was located on Dvornaya - Smorgon court. Vilenskaya and Krevskaya indicated the direction to the corresponding places - Vilnius and Krevo. But as for Kostelnaya and Skomoroshya streets there is a completely different story.

Smorgon was first mentioned in written sources in 1503. Yuri Zenovich saw that the population in the vicinity of his estate did not have a church to satisfy the spiritual needs. He began the construction of a paraphial church. The street where it was located was called Kostelnaya. In the 40s of the XVII century it received a new name Slobodskaya. The street stretched along the Oksna River. The renaming was probably due to the fact that the old wooden church lost its former meaning. This place was taken by a new stone shrine (now the Church of the Saint Michael the Archangel).

In ancient times streets were sometimes named depending on the occupations of local residents. This is exactly what Skomoroshya Street belonged to. Buffoons (skomorohies) were also called animal trainers.  The Radziwills are considered to be the founders of the Bear Academy in our city. Smorgon became their possession only in 1628, and the street Skomoroshya had already existed in 1622. Therefore, it is likely that the school bear training in Smorgoni was founded by its first owners Zenovichi. The school reached its heyday under the Radziwills. Later, Skomoroshya Street was renamed into Medvedskaya.

Gradually, the place grew. Industry and trade developed in it. The population was increasing. In 1835, there were already 11 streets in the town and the market area. Among the new streets are Minsk, Vileiskaya, Nemetskaya, Poselenskaya. The courtyard was renamed Battereynaya after the War of 1812. When the Great Army

retreated Napoleon arrived to Smorgon and settled in the house of Karol Przedecki. Presumably, his house was in Dvornaya Street next to the place where the Cathedral of the God's Transfiguration was built. Napoleon's batterie stopped here, people decided to rename the street.

By the end of the XIX - beginning of the XX centuries, the place became the center of the leather industry. The people who where involved in the processing and making of skins were called garbars. Thereby, Garbarnaya street appeared. Thanks to the development of industry in 1904 the place received the status of a city.

Time passed. New production was established, new houses were built, new streets were created and old streets were renamed. In 1945 Vilenskaya Street became Sovetskaya Street, Medvedskaya - Tankistov, Battery - Krasnoarmeyskaya. In the 60's Novaya was renamed into Patrice Lumumba Street (now Petr Balysh Street), Krevskaya - into Gagarina Street, Ogorodnaya - Kutuzova, Minskaya - Lenina, Vokzalnaya - Komsomolskaya. Zarechnaya Street was named in honor of Alexander Ivanov, Vileyskaya - in the name of of Alexander Kaminsky.

Now there are more than 130 streets, lanes and driveways in Smorgon.

 Oksana GEYBOVICH.

Photo by the author, from the archives of the Smorgon History Museum and the Internet.