According to The Motorcyclers, Novosibirsk is located in the southern part of Western Siberia on the Priobsky plateau on the banks of the Ob River not far from the Novosibirsk reservoir. The first settlement from which the city of Novosibirsk later grew, was founded in 1893. The village arose near the railway bridge under construction across the Ob River and was called Novaya. Later, it received the status of a settlement, which became known as Aleksandrovsky, in honor of Alexander III. Since 1895, the village was renamed Novonikolaevsky in honor of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker. In 1903 it received city status. An important stage in the history of the city was the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway, which made it a major transport hub. Also, the manufacturing industry developed here, the leading industry of which was flour milling. In 1925, Novonikolaevsk was renamed Novosibirsk and became the center of the Siberian region. During the Second World War in Novosibirsk many industrial enterprises were relocated, which gave impetus to the rapid growth of local industry. Since 2002, Novosibirsk has been the center of the Siberian Federal District and a major industrial city, where mechanical engineering, electric power, metallurgy and the food industry are developed.
On the city’s main square, Lena Square, stands the building of the Novosibirsk State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre. This building has become a symbol of Novosibirsk since its appearance in the middle of the 20th century. It is the largest theater building in Russia and the second in the world. For its size, it is also called the “Siberian Colosseum”. The Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theater is the largest theater in Siberia. It was founded in 1922.
In the central part of Novosibirsk is the chapel of St. Nicholas. It was erected in 1915 in the Novgorod-Pskov tradition in honor of the patron saint of Emperor Nicholas II. During the years of Soviet power, the chapel was destroyed. It was restored only to the 1000th anniversary of Christianity in Russia. Among the sights of the central part of the city, one can also single out the building of the City Trade Building. It was built in 1911 after several major fires that destroyed many of the wooden buildings. It housed administrative offices and chambers of trade entrepreneurs. Concerts are held in the large hall of the shopping arcade these days. Since 1987, the trading building has housed Novosibirsk State Regional Museum of Local Lore. The museum was founded in 1920. The exhibits of the museum tell about the ancient history of the region, about the culture and life of the indigenous peoples of Siberia, rural residents and townspeople in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and about the history of the settlement of the region. Here is an ethnographic collection, a collection of cult items, including a unique collection of shaman costumes and tambourines, a collection of furniture from the 18th-20th centuries, a collection of precious metals, a collection of weapons, a collection of natural history and a collection of patterned stones. Alexander Nevsky Church on Red Avenue. This is one of the oldest stone structures in the city. The church was built in 1896-1899 in neo-Byzantine style with the active participation of the royal family. The cathedral was erected in honor of Alexander III. Its paintings were made by Tomsk masters. In 1937, the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral was closed. In 1989 it was returned to the church, and in 1992 it was restored.
In 1924-1925, the inhabitants of Novosibirsk built a house-monument to Lenin at their own expense. Initially, the building looked like a Moscow mausoleum. Subsequently, the house was rebuilt several times. Today it houses the Novosibirsk State Philharmonic.
The ancient railway bridge of the late 20th century, with the construction of which the history of the city began, has now been dismantled, its parts were put up on the bank of the Ob in memory of this structure.
In the left-bank part of the city there is a memorial ensemble “To the Feat of Siberians in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945” with a monument of Glory. The total area of the ensemble is 2 hectares. It was opened in 1967. Walk of Fame – five paved paths surrounded by trees lead to the square on which the monument of Glory is installed. The monument is a figure of a grieving mother, around which rise 7 pylons with engraved military scenes and the names of fallen soldiers. The Eternal Flame burns in front of the monument. Between the pylons there are 4 urns with earth from under the city of Yelnya, from the Borodino field, from Mamaev Kurgan and from the battlefields of the 19th Guards Siberian Volunteer Rifle Corps.