"Dawn Town" a Zorinsk Travel Page by hunterV

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Apartment houses, Zorinsk

Perevalsk District

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Dawn Town - this is how the town's name would sound in English. It was called so in honor of dawn as a symbol of future and hope.
In 1963, when the coalminers' settlement was about to get the minicipal rights, hundreds of coalminers took part in the contest for the best town's name. The offer “Zorinsk” won the contest for is was considered to be the embodiment of the essence of the coalminers’ labor:
valuable undertakings at the coalmine,
first morning lights welcoming the coalminers at dawn
and evening lights all over the town.
I went to Zorinsk with my Scottish friend (VT: scotsguy) who came to Luhansk to meet his pen pals and wanted to see his pen pal in Zorinsk.
So we made several new friends there. I went there for the second time to see my new friends at the town council who had helped us a lot during our first visit.
Zorinsk is located 22 km/13.7 miles from the district center, the town of Perevalsk (Perevalsk = "Mountain Pass Town" in English) to the west of Luhansk, not far from M21 highway Luhansk-Debaltsevo, an hour drive from Luhansk.
So we went there by the Donetsk bus departing at 9.10 a.m. and managed to do a lot during our day trip and return to Luhansk soon after 9 p.m. by the Donetsk train.
Zorinsk has held municipal rights since December 1963.
December 17, 1963 is the official foundation date of Zorinsk. On that day settlements of Manuilovka and “Nickanor” coalmine were united into one town.
It is one of the smallest towns of Luhansk region with the population of about 9 thousand inhabitants, the town where everyone seems to know everyone like in a small village.
It is located 1 km away from Luhansk-Debaltsevo highway on the hills of the Donets Plateau at the height from 270 (886 feet) to 290 meters (951 feet) above the sea level (for comparison: Luhansk is located at about 70 meters (230 feet).
The settlement of Bayrachki located at the opposite side of the highway with the population of about 1,000 inhabitants is subordinated to the town.
You can also have a look at the map of the area (the southern part of Luhansk and Donetsk regions with Zorinsk there):
Zorinsk is the first town on the left located to the northeast of the crossing of two highways marked red:
Map of Zorinsk area

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Old fountain in the town park, Zorinsk

Some History

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The town history is closely connected with the development of the coalmines in the area.
Nickanor-New coalmine is located at the town territory. The coalmine has operated since 1930 and was reconstructed afterwards.
At present this coalmine is the only operating one in the whole of Perevalsk District.
The town grew around the coalmine workers settlement called Yelenovka located to the west of the village of Yelenovka at the Lozova River. The village was called so by its founder, lieutenant Nickolay Rayevsky, the father of General Nickolay Rayevsky, the hero of the Patriotic War of 1812, a friend of the great Russian poet Alexander Pushkin. General Rayevsky called the settlement Yelenovka in honor of his daughter Yelena.
In 1808 Archangel St.Michael's Cathedral was consecrated in the village. It is still one of the oldest cathedrals in Luhansk region. It is also called "Pushkin's church" for Alexander Pushkin visited his friends, the Rayevsky family, on his way to the Caucasus.
According to the legend, General Nickolay Rayevsky together with his daughters Sophia and Mary and Alexander Pushkin visited Yelenovka on their way to the Causasus and spent several days in the village of Yelenovka. The Rayevskys attended the mass at St.Michael Cathedral. Nobody can confirm that fact now, but the people are proud of this history.
The coalminers’ settlement to the west of the village was first called Yelenovka Mine. The coalmine was built in the thirties during the period of intensive industrialization of the Soviet Union.
Zorinsk is the town of district subordination now.

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“To the Stars!” monument, Coalminers Square

Getting There and Back

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The area around the present Zorinsk belonged to the Serb Hussar Major Vuyich at the end of the 18th century. His widow Ann Vuich had an estate located near the present railway station of Manuilovka.
The town’s railway station is called Manuilovka and was built in 1878 during the construction of Debaltsevo-Luhansk railway. It is a typical Russian railway station of the 19th century. It takes you about two hours to get to Luhansk by train from there. The train is very convenient for it departs at 7.32 p.m. (Donetsk-Starobelsk train).
Theater Street is the main street of Zorinsk.
There are many war memorials in the town.
During the Second World War the town territory was occupied by the Nazi invaders from July 12, 1942 till September 3, 1943. September 3 is observed as Liberation Day.
The town streets have rather typical names for Soviet towns and cities:
Lenin Street, October Street, Sovietskaya Street, Komsomol Street, 40 Years of Victory Block.You can see several old sculptures in the streets of the town.
In fact, 19 sculptural groups appeared there in 1958, in the period of flourishing of the coalmines: Family sculptural group in Lenin Street, Young Guards Heroes monument in front of the coalmine’s club, war memorial behind the town club and Lenin monument dedicated on September 28, 1958 at the town square. Now all there sculptures look very old and neglected.
By the way, there was a vessel at the Black Sea Company called “Zorinsk”. Regretfully it was sold by BLASCO, the Black Sea Company, on April 24, 1996 during large-scale sales. The vessel was turned into a universal vessel and has sailed since March 1997 from Calcutta as “Deneb”.The town's coordinates are:
38°37'25"E - 48°24'43"N
You can see the place details at:
http://nona.net

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