Kresttsy

Kresttsy Municipal District lies in the central part of the Novgorod Region. Its administrative centre, the urban-type settlement of Kresttsy, is 86 km from Veliky Novgorod. The territory covers 280 thousand sq. km. Its landscape reflects the transition between the Priilmen Lowland and the Valday Hills: the west is flatter and lower, while the east is higher, hillier and richer in lakes. Many rivers rise here, including the largest, the Kholova, which crosses most of the district and flows into the Msta. Historically it was used to float timber and move barges to Novgorod and onward along the Volkhov to St. Petersburg. Kresttsy is first mentioned in 1393. The Second Novgorod Chronicle records the building of a Church of the Mother of God “at Khresttsy” in 1393. The settlement later became Khresttsovsky churchyard and then Krestetsky Yam. By decree of Empress Catherine II dated 24 August (4 September) 1776, Krestetsky Yam was transformed into the town of Kresttsy and became the centre of the new Kresttsy Uyezd of the Novgorod Viceroyalty. A general town plan was prepared in 1778, under which the Catherine Cathedral and the empress’s Travel Palace were built. The town coat of arms was approved on 16 August 1781: its upper section repeated the Novgorod arms and the lower showed two major roads crossing on a green field, reflecting the origin of the name. In 1796, Kresttsy lost its status as a district town. Parts of Kresttsy Uyezd went to Novgorod and Valday uyezds. On 24 April 1802 Kresttsy regained its rights, though the lands were not returned. In 1824, when Demyansk Uyezd was formed, additional Kresttsy settlements and small industries were transferred to it. In 1851, the Nikolayevskaya Railway was built between St. Petersburg and Moscow, one of the largest construction projects in Russia. Passing through Kresttsy Uyezd, it stimulated Malaya Vishera and Okulovka, which developed industrially and later became district centres themselves. After the war, Kresttsy gradually expanded. Forestry and furniture production were important. The district hosted the experimental site of the central research institute for mechanisation and energy in the forest industry, known as Kresttsy Lespromkhoz, where new logging machinery was tested. It also served as a training centre for forestry workers from western and northwestern parts of the RSFSR, Karelia and areas with similar conditions. The traditional Kresttsy stitch craft developed on a factory basis. Today agriculture plays a leading role, represented by two major agricultural holdings: Belgrankorm-Veliky Novgorod LLC and Ustvolmsky Pig Complex JSC. Major enterprises also include V Rozhdestvo LLC, producing and processing glass products including technical glass; Kresttsy Stitch LLC, producing traditional folk-art goods; Kresttsy Bakery LLC, producing bread, flour confectionery, cakes and short-shelf-life pastries; the Nevskoye underground gas storage branch, which injects, stores and withdraws gas to balance seasonal demand and support the unified gas system of the Northwest; Yagoda LLC, processing and preserving fruit and vegetables; and Bioprodmash LLC, producing food fibre for the food industry.