Iskitim is an old working town in the Novosibirsk region, which specializes in the production of building materials. One of dozens of faceless communities built to work in, not to live comfortably.
General information
Iskitim is located on the banks of the Berd River, the right tributary of the Ob, 26 km from the regional city. It is the administrative center of the district of the same name. The area of the city of Iskitim is 29.9 sq. km. It is located in the southeastern part of the Novosibirsk region. The Iskitim railway station is removed at a distance of 57 km. from Novosibirsk-Main. The highway Novosibirsk - Biysk passes through the city.
The basis of Iskitim's industry since the 1930s has been enterprises producing building materials. Cement, stone-working and slate factories, a building materials plant and many others are still operating. Of the enterprises in other industries, Teplopribor and a plant for the production of synthetic fiber can be noted.
Development of the region
There are various etymological theories about the origin of the city's name. According to the most generally accepted version, it is believed that the ethnonym "Iskitim" comes from the word "askishtim" (variant - ashkitim, azkeshtim). In the language of the Teleuts, the tribal group of the steppe Turks, who lived in this area in ancient times, means "pit" or "bowl" - this area is really located in a basin. The ancient Turkic people came to the Ob region in the 15th-17th centuries, displacing the Finno-Ugric peoples who had previously lived here. In the next two centuries, Russian Cossacks and peasants became the dominant population of Iskitim.
During the development of Siberia in 1604, a large fortress was built - the Tomsk prison, from which a chain of smaller defensive structures was built to protect against the raids of the Dzungars and Kyrgyz tribes. The area around the fortresses began to be built up with settlements and Cossack zaseks. Not far from one of the fortifications, near the modern city of Berdsk, several villages were built, later included in modern Iskitim, Novosibirsk region. By the Russian census of 1717, the villages of Shipunovo, Koinov, Vylkovo and Chernodyrovo had already been settled.
Between the wars
In 1929, as a result of exploration work in the vicinity of Iskitim, limestone and shale were found. From 1930 to 1934, the largest cement enterprise in Siberia, the Chernorechensky cement plant, was built. In 1933, a working settlement was formed on the basis of several villages and the territory of the Siblag camps. Iskitim. The industrial development of the region attracts specialists from other regions of the country. At that time, several thousand people lived in the village with the dominance of the Russian population.
In subsequent years, a machine and tractor station was formed here, territorial authorities were organized: the military registration and enlistment office, the district executive committee, the district committee of the Komsomol. Administrative buildings and camp facilities of the special commandant's office of the OGPU are being built. In 1938, it received the status of a city of regional subordination. In 1939, the population of Iskitim is 14,000 people.
Recent Times
During the Great Patriotic War, thousands of city residents went to fight, few of them returned to their hometown. In 1951, Iskitim became a city of regional subordination, which stimulated economic development and accelerated the demographic. In 1959, the population of Iskitim was 34,320, more than twice the pre-war population. Labor resources arrived in the region from all over the country. The local building materials industry was strongly stimulated by the increased volumes of construction in the regional center. In 1967, the population of Iskitim grew to 45,000 people.
In 1973, the number of Iskitims for the first time exceeded 50,000, and the city had a population of 51,000. The following years are characterized by active construction of engineering infrastructure, landscaping and construction of new residential microdistricts and industrial enterprises. Demand for building materials continues to outstrip supply. The population is growing largely due to the labor force,coming from the former Soviet republics. In 1987, the maximum number was reached - 69,000 people. In subsequent years, long periods of decline in the number of inhabitants alternated with short periods of growth. In 2017, 57,032 people lived in Iskitim, Novosibirsk Region.
