Water tower, Vladimir: history, address, opening hours. The Old Vladimir Museum in the water tower

Familiarize themselves with the history of any city museums, especially if they are located in unusual old buildings. After all, they retain the energy of the era in which they were built. Even a simple stay in such museums can give an unforgettable experience. One of these unusual museums is the water tower in Vladimir. It is her today's article devoted to.

Water tower of Vladimir: the history of

In the second half of the nineteenth century, the city began to build a water pipeline, and in this connection, there was a need to build a water tower. Initially, Vladimir's authorities wanted to save and implement the project of altering the tower of an inactive church. However, the idea was unsuccessful: during construction several workers were killed. Therefore, the basis of the water tower of Vladimir was taken by the project of Charles Dill. Under his leadership, an unusual construction appeared on Kozlovoy Val, decorated with a brick in the Neo-Russian style. The date for the completion of construction is considered to be 1868.

The significance of the tower for the citizens

The very water tower at that time was very remarkable against the background of ordinary urban buildings. It contained only eight thousand buckets of water, but its construction was the beginning of serious transformations in Vladimir.

In parallel, the construction of the tower in the city built a water column and a pool of stone with a fountain. The work of all this provided the English steam engine, located in the building of the water tower of Vladimir.

Tower rebuilding and description

In 1912, it was decided to slightly rebuild the building of Dill. The author of the new project was the local architect Zharov. After that, the water tower became a real decoration of the city. It has three floors, and the shape resembles a cistern, which expands noticeably at the top. If you look at the construction from afar, it reminds both the tower and the fortress wall. On each floor there are beautiful window openings of different sizes, the walls are decorated with arches and cornices made of red brick.

The period of oblivion

The water tower of Vladimir faithfully served the townspeople until the middle of the last century. During this period, reconstruction of the water pipeline took place in the city, and the monumental structure lost its importance for Vladimir. The building was abandoned and boarded up, and in the lower floors the homeless and vagrants often found shelter.

The city authorities for a very long time thought what to do with the water tower. In the sixty-seventh year of the twentieth century, it received the status of a cultural monument, and four years later became part of the Vladimir-Suzdal Museum-Reserve. It is worth noting that all of the museums of Vladimir are interesting and multifaceted expositions, so it was decided to reconstruct the tower and fill it with unusual exhibits.

Education of the museum

The authorities of the city, having seen all the museums of Vladimir, decided to turn the former water tower into a special museum dedicated to the life of the citizens of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. But originally the building had to undergo reconstruction and be adapted for mass visits to people.

In 1975, all the necessary works were completed, and on May 1 a new city museum "Old Vladimir" was opened. I want to tell you more about its exposition.

Features of the first museum exposition

We have already mentioned that all the exhibits of the Old Vladimir Museum are devoted to the lives of citizens. Here are collected all sorts of objects, giving a complete picture of everyday life of ordinary people in the nineteenth century. The first visitors of the museum thought that they seemed to fall into the long forgotten times when people lived by absolutely different rules than today.

It is interesting that no exhibit had a signature and description, because under each were genuine newspaper clippings, giving an idea of this or that subject and its purpose.

Reconstruction of the museum and renewal of the exposition

In 2009, the city authorities conducted a large-scale reconstruction, it turned the museum into something unusual, which almost all visitors of the city try to visit. What is it that attracts tourists to the former water tower? Let's try to understand.

At the moment, each floor of the tower is dedicated to a certain topic. The first floor is a dive into the peculiarities of the city economy and an acquaintance with the external appearance of the city. On the second, you can find out how people lived and what the Vladimirs did in their spare time. The third floor is dedicated to the spiritual life of the townspeople, and on the fourth floor there is a beautiful observation deck with a magnificent view of the whole of Vladimir and its surroundings.

What can you see in the museum?

Almost all the walls of the water tower are completely covered with newspaper clippings, postcards and photographs. Thanks to this, the first floor resembles the usual city streets of Vladimir in the late nineteenth century. The museum staff accurately recreated the interiors of merchant houses, theaters and churches. This excursion literally immerses visitors in the color of the long-gone era.

On the second and third floor, more than eight hundred different exhibits have been collected, which further reveal the characteristics of the life of the Vladimirites. For example, a special interest among tourists is caused by the prison lattice, which stood in the window opening in the cell of the Vladimir central. These and other items are genuine and therefore so interesting to visitors to the museum.

Vladimir, water tower: the address of the museum

If you find yourself in Vladimir, then definitely visit the exposition of this museum. It is located on the street Kozlov Val, house 14. The closest stop to the water tower is called the "Golden Gate". You can get here on trolley-buses and buses. The most convenient bus routes are No. 15 and 25, and if you prefer a trolleybus, then take a seat on No. 5. Any of them will quickly take you to the desired place.

Schedule

The water tower of Vladimir's work hours is quite convenient to visit. You can get here from Tuesday to Sunday, from ten o'clock in the morning until six in the evening. The day off is Monday, and the last Wednesday of the month is a sanitary day.

The entrance ticket costs about eighty rubles for all categories of the population, except for pensioners. For them, a discount ticket for fifty rubles is available.

Reviews about the museum

If you look a bit for information about the museum in the water tower on the Internet, then you will come across numerous reviews about visiting this place. Already the first enthusiastic comments will suffice in order to start dreaming about a trip to Vladimir and excursions to this museum.

All tourists without exception noted a beautiful observation deck, located on the fourth floor of the museum. Visitors have a breathtaking view of the city from such a height, besides the special feeling is caused by a constant wind, which always accompanies those who risk climbing to the observation deck of the tower.

Many guests of Vladimir recognize that the museum is very romantic. It is fanned by the spirit of antiquity and becomes a real surprise for visitors. On the first floor of the tower you can buy copies of old newspapers, which described the city news, housed marital ads and funny stories of writers of those years.

Even in the reviews are necessarily mentioned museum staff, who are devoted to their work and can spend hours talking about the exposition. Therefore, if you have such an opportunity, then be sure to take time to inspect the water tower. Judging by the comments of tourists, this excursion will be interesting for both children and adults.