Metallistov is a street in the Central District of Tula, one of the oldest in the city. It starts at the Pyatnitsky Gate of the Tula Kremlin and ends on Sovetskaya Street.
The street has changed its name several times. In the 16th century, it was called Pyatnitskaya, from the name of the church of Paraskeva Friday, which was located next to it.
The street was well maintained, neat and quite rich. In 1742, it was completely paved with expensive cobblestones. All the houses were built of white stone and red brick. Gostiny Dvor, two barbers, a drinking house, several taverns, 40 shops, and a temperance society were located on Pyatnitskaya Street. There were lanterns at almost all entrances, which was a great luxury in those days.
The modern name, Metallistov Street, appeared in 1924. The street owes its name to the Tula branch of the Moscow Society for Metalworking (Union of Metalworkers). It was located in house No. 5, which in the 18th century belonged to the merchant's wife Katerina Nazarova Nasedkina. There was also a tea shop of the metalworkers' union nearby, which served as a recreation and meeting place for the city's trade union activists. Tula members of the Bolshevik Party distributed illegal literature, Pravda and Zvezda newspapers in the tea shop. On February 22, 1915, a rally was held in the tea house, at which a resolution was adopted to protest against the trial of the Bolshevik deputies of the Fourth State Duma. In memory of all these events, Pyatnitskaya Street was renamed Metallistov Street in 1924.
At the very beginning of Metallistov Street, near the Pyatnitskaya Tower of the Tula Kremlin, there was a beautiful church dedicated to the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God. It was built in Tula back in the 17th century, along with the Annunciation and Holy Cross churches, of which only the Annunciation has survived to this day.
Having been badly damaged in the fire of 1834, the Kazan Church was dismantled, and a new temple was built in its place according to the design of the famous Russian architect Vasily Fedoseev.
A significant part of the money for the construction was donated by the merchant of the II Guild, hereditary honorary citizen Stepan Ivanovich Trukhin. The church was consecrated on July 6, 1858. In 1868, a new bell tower was built.
Among the treasures of the temple were a carved Kazan icon of the Mother of God on a silver plaque, a gift from Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich and his wife Maria Ilyinichna, made in 1665 "for the birth and long–term health of his son... Simeon", and another Kazan icon of the Mother of God, embroidered in gold and silver on red satin. According to legend, it was hand-made and presented to the temple by Natalia Kirillovna, the second wife of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, the mother of Peter I.
There was also a 1597 Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God in Kazan in a rich frame, made in 1694 from gold and silver, decorated with precious stones and pearls. There is also a censer with a silver lid shaped like a church. It had an inscription on it: "In the summer of 7170 (1662), the great Tsar and Grand Duke Alexy Mikhailovich, the autocrat of All Russia, bestowed this censer on the church of Our Most Holy Lady, Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, of her precious image of Kazan, in Tula."
There was an altarpiece in the church in a hammered silver gilt frame, decorated with gems and pearls, with the inscription: "7165 (1657) was built by the Archpriest of the Annunciation, which is in the Emperor's hall, Lukyan Kirillov, in Tula – to the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos of Kazan, which is in the Posad."
House No. 2 is a former manor house from the middle of the 19th century. The true decoration of the house is its original structure, rounded corner facade. The balcony with wrought iron grilles on the corner facade appeared in the 1920s. The last owner of this house was the merchant Leonov. Until 1917, there were shops on the ground floor of the building – Denisov's Bakery, I.F. Mitrokhin and V.V. Leontiev's Fish Trade. Later, there was a temperance society and a tea house. From 1927 to 1941, Tula designer V.N. Lyububin lived in this house, whose memories of this house are included in the book "The Life and Adventures of a Tula Designer":
"The three of us (Mom, Dima, and me) were moved to a factory house at 2 Metallistov Street, since two of us, my mother and I, worked at the factory. We were provided with two rooms on the ground floor, with an area of 36 sq.m. There was a bathtub, a warm toilet and running water, but besides us, Engineer Prechbelsky's family lived in two more rooms in this apartment. There were old shopping malls and the Kazan Church opposite our house. It was closed after a miraculous icon appeared in it in 1924. Both of these buildings were beautiful in their own way. Nightingales sang in the ancient lime trees near the church. In 1927, they began to demolish them...".
House No. 4 — In 1799, the house belonged to merchants Vasily and Peter Popov. Soap, candles, kerosene, tea, sugar, and coffee were sold here.
House No. 8 is a rich house in the French Renaissance style that belonged to Klim Klimovich Makeev.
House No. 10, a mansion in the late classicism style, belonged to the Belolipetskys.Mikhail Grigorievich Belolipetsky was born in 1837 into a simple peasant family. At the age of 35, he founded the Tula Gingerbread factory. Later it became known as "M. G. Belolipetsky and his sons." The first floor of the house was occupied by a gingerbread shop. The second floor was divided into two parts: in one there was a pastry shop, and in the other — the apartment of the Belolipetskys. Sugar round "erbiki" and "turnips", "curly" vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry gingerbread were on sale. Belolipetsky was one of the first in Tula to advertise his product. Numerous local history literature connects this house with the Batashov family name on the grounds that a cast-iron board has been preserved on the courtyard facade, which bears the date "1891" and the initials "N. I.B.".
House No. 12 — belonged to the burghers Egor and Ivan Sisin.
House No. 14 and No. 16 — these houses are one estate. It belonged to the merchants of the 3rd guild, Ivan and Peter Melnikov.
House No. 18 belonged to Dobrynin's merchant wife. Since 1918, the estate has been owned by the pharmacist of the 1st department, Eduard Fedorovich Miller. He also owns house No. 21 on the west side of the street.
House Number 20 — Belonged To The Liventsevs.
Eduard Bazhatkov, a well-known journalist and former head of the Tula state Television and radio company, lived on Metallistov Street. This is how he recalled in his poems about his favorite street.
Is Tula a tourist mecca? Affirmative answer You'll find it on Metallers- A street where there have been many years I lived under the old roof the house overlooks the Kremlin. As a child, he seemed taller and older than it is now. Lots of shady poplars they cooled Tula's ardor. And also about Metalworkers The trolleybus paved the way. Where the streets start, the transport was making a turn. Shortened the way to school The Pyatnitsky Gate tower. It's her first name This street has taken over. What did they have, but they didn't keep it? That's how the country lived then. We have chosen a thorny path, for protection from enemies The honor was given to the metalworkers, abandoning the gods. Where are you Friday Church? Where are you, honest merchants? Having distorted everything in the heat of the moment, We're making ends meet now. Thank God, the field is clear I didn't have to. Resisted the Metalworkers, They're putting a gloss on it again. Don't recognize your native walls! The house where I lived is like a palace! It is a pity that these changes my father won't see it.; An ancient treasure for tourists, a rarity - for Tula. Take a look at the Metalworkers- There's a path going back centuries.
Eduard Bazhatkov (resident of house No. 8 on Metallistov Street from 1967 to 1984).
