In Krasnoyarsk, on the Yenisei embankment behind the Enthusiasts Square, a photo exhibition “Krasnoyarsk – City of Labor Valor in the Faces” opened. The exhibition was dedicated to the fifth anniversary of the awarding of the honorary title to the regional capital.
The mayor's office said that the first visitors to the exhibition were students and members of the Youth Army.
“I didn’t know that Victory was so hard. For example, the workers who made gunpowder had dust in their lungs, so everyone suffered from “consumption.” And there were just boys there, 14 years old, I couldn’t do that,” Vitaly Petrov, a student at the Krasnoyarsk Institute of Water Transport, shared his impressions.
Rare photographs from the archives of enterprises and the Krasnoyarsk Museum of Local Lore tell about the feat of Siberians. We had no battles, but thousands of townspeople went to fight, and those who remained without sleep and rest worked in the rear, bringing the common Victory closer.
During the war years, Krasnoyarsk became one of the most important industrial centers of the country. Factories and factories were evacuated to us. The black and white photographs show not just factory floors and machines, but the emaciated faces of women, old people and teenagers.
Krasnoyarsk residents produced military and civilian products, helping the front. Krasmash, Sibtyazhmash, Shipbuilding and Combine Plants, the Yenisei Chemical Plant, Radio Communications, Krastsvetmet, EVRZ and others made their contribution.
“Enterprises arrived in trains. Without having time to equip workshops, people worked right on the street. My hands froze to the steel. They worked 16-18 hours a day, many spent the night at enterprises to meet the quota,” said Tatyana Ivleva, director of the Krasnoyarsk Victory Memorial Museum.
Siberians made aerial bombs, mortars, grenades, and warheads for Katyusha rockets. Krasmash anti-aircraft guns destroyed 70% of enemy aircraft. It was at our Shipyard that they created the first “flying boat” LL-143 and produced the Be-4 naval reconnaissance aircraft. Krasnoyarsk armored trains helped the front, our Red Communard combines harvested grain.
The refinery (Krastsvetmet) was built from scratch during two war years. Platinum was used for explosives and aviation electronics, and gold was used to pay for weapons. A plant representative told the teenagers in what inhumane conditions the Krasnoyarsk residents worked.
“Because of the acrid smoke, people could not see each other two steps away. They worked ankle-deep in solutions, acid dripped on their heads, so they walked around with green hair, their hands were covered in ulcers. This is the price of Victory,” shared Svetlana Plechkina, specialist in the information policy department of Krastsvetmet JSC.
Each frame of the photo exhibition is the story of those who bore the war on their shoulders, remaining in the rear.
“We are grateful to the enterprise museums and the Krasnoyarsk Museum of Local Lore for their response and provision of these photographs. I invite the townspeople to come here with their children, to touch the history of the labor feat of Siberians,” Svetlana Skripalshchikova, deputy mayor of the city – head of the information policy department.
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