улица Некрасова

In 1703, imagine a marshy, inhospitable landscape. This is where Tsar Peter the Great envisioned a grand city, a “window to Europe.” This street we stand on, Nekrasova Street, played a crucial part in that vision. Originally called Basseynaya Street, meaning “street of pools,” it served a vital purpose. The pools at the end of the street supplied water to the magnificent fountains of the Summer Garden. Can you picture the water flowing down this very street, towards the heart of the burgeoning city? Sadly, those fountains met their demise in the devastating flood of 1777. Later, the pools were replaced by the Greek Garden, yet Nekrasova Street remained. Its name changed in 1918 to honor the celebrated Russian writer Nikolai Nekrasov, who once resided nearby. Now, take a closer look at the intersection of Nekrasova Street and Liteyny Prospect. There stands a building, once the home and office of publisher Andrew Krayevsky, now the Nekrasov Museum-Apartment. Here, within these walls, Nekrasov edited influential literary magazines like “Patriotic Notes” and “Contemporary.” The building is affectionately known as the “Five Nikolas,” a nickname derived from the five plaques adorning its façade. These plaques commemorate Nekrasov, Chernyshevsky, Pirogov, Figner, and Dobrolyubov, each a significant figure in Russian literature and intellectual history. Nekrasova Street, therefore, is more than just a street. It’s a quiet testament to the evolution of Saint Petersburg, from its watery beginnings to its literary zenith.