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Kemerovo (Russian: Кемерово) is an industrial city on the River Tom situated east-northeast of Novosibirsk in Siberia, Russia (55 25N 86 05E). Its population is around 520,600. It is the capital of the Kemerovo Oblast in the major coal mining region of the Kuznetsk Basin.
Geography and economy
The city is situated 3,482 km east of Moscow at the confluence of the Iskitim and Tom rivers. It is an important industrial city developed during Soviet times with important chemical, fertiliser and manufacturing industries and is linked to western Russia by a branch of the Trans-Siberian Railway. Since the fall of the Soviet Union the city's industries have experienced a severe decline, creating high levels of unemployment.
Kemerovo's position gives it a continental climate with average temperatures varying between -18°C (January) to 20°C (July) and relatively low precipitation, of around 420 mm annually.
History
Kemerovo is an amalgamation of, and successor to, several older Russian settlements. A waypoint named Verkhotomsky ostrog was established nearby in 1657 on a road from Tomsk to Kuznestkaya krepost (Kuznetsk fortress). In 1701, the settlement of Scheglovo was founded on the left bank of the Tom; soon it became a village. By 1859, seven villages existed on the area of the modern Kemerovo: Scheglovka (or Ust-Iskitimskoye), Kemerovo (named in 1734), Evseevo, Krasny Yar, Kur-Iskitim (Pleshki), Davydovo (Ishanovo), and Borovaya. In 1721, coal was discovered in the area. The first coal mines were established in 1907 and a chemical works was established in 1916. By 1917, the population of Scheglovo had grown to around 4,000 people.
The area's further development was boosted by building a railway between Yurga and Kolchugino (now Lenisk-Kuznetsk) with a connection between Topki and Scheglovo. Scheglovo was given the status of a city in 1918. Kemerovo, at the time still a village, became part of Scheglovsk municipality. In 1932, Scheglovsk was renamed Kemerovo and became the center of the Kemerovo Oblast (Kemerovo Region) in 1943.
Notable landmarks
Kemerovo possesses five higher education institutions: Kemerovo State University, Kuzbass State Technical University, Kemerovo Medical Academy, Kemerovo Art Academy and Kemerovo Agricultural Institute.
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