Grayvoron

Graiworon (Russian Грайворон ) is a small town in Belgorod Oblast (Russia) with 6234 inhabitants (as of October 14, 2010 ).

Geography

The city lies on the southern edge of the Central Russian plate about 80 km west of the Oblasthauptstadt Belgorod on the left bank of the Vorskla, a left tributary of the Dnieper.

Graiworon is the administrative center of the homonymous Rajons.

History

Graiworon was created in 1678 as a trading settlement ( Sloboda ) at the mouth of the river Graiworonka in the Vorskla. The name means in the southern Russian dialect Rook ( Russian Grach, and Woron for Raven; see coat of arms ).

1838 a city charter was granted.

During World War II Graiworon was occupied on October 19, 1941 by the German Wehrmacht and temporarily recaptured on 16 February 1943 by troops of the Voronezh Front Red Army during the Battle of Kharkov. During a counter-offensive succeeded the Wehrmacht on 13 March 1943 to conquer the city again, until it was finally taken on August 7, 1943 by troops of the Voronezh Front in the Belgorod- Kharkov operation.

Demographics

Note: Census data (1926 and 1939 rounded)

Culture and sights

In the city a number of buildings in the style of " Semstwoarchitektur " of the 19th and early 20th century is preserved, so the boy and the girl High School and the Semstwoverwaltung, as well as a villa with Art Nouveau elements, today sanatorium.

Economy and infrastructure

In Graiworon there is an electrical factory as well as companies in the food and construction industries.

The city is located ten kilometers west of the station Chotmyschsk of this section in 1911 opened railway Bryansk Lgow -Kharkiv.

By Graiworon the regional road R186 leads Belgorod- Ukrainian border.

Personalities

• Vladimir Shukhov (1853-1939), engineer and architect; Born in Graiworon