Katav-Ivanovsk

Year of foundation – 1755
Territory – 3415 sq. km

Nearest railway station – Katav-Ivanovsk

Distance to the region center - 321 km
Population – 40,4 thousand people

City status from 27.08.1939

Katav-Ivanovsk is one of the oldest cities of the metallurgical region. 

It is situated on the western slope of the South Urals, on the river Katav (left tributary of the Yuryuzan), 36 km away from the railway station Vyazovaya, 321 km to the south-west from Chelyabinsk).   

It was founded in 1755 as a village during the construction of iron-producing plant on the river Katav by the merchants Ivan Tverdyshev and Ivan Myasnikov. The river gave its name to the plant. The name Katav originates from the name of the bashkir tribe katai, which lived in these places a long time ago.

From the end of the 18^th till the end of the 19^th century the city was owned by the Russian gentry family Beloselski-Belozerski. The Katav-Ivanovsk plant, which was famous for its rails made of Bessemer steel, was the center of the Katav metallurgical district.     

Sights

Regional museum.

The church of John the Baptist (1824), the mansion of Beloselski-Belozerskis and others.

The Ignatiev cave, the memorial of nature, is situated 8 km away from the Serpievo village (the Katav-ivanovsk region).  

City's economy

The leading branches of industry are machine-building, metal-working, industry of building materials, power industry, forest, woodworking and pulp and paper industry.

In 2001 industry comprised 85,6%, agriculture – 0,3%, building – 0,3%, trade and public catering – 0,6% in the structure of production. 

There are deposits of marble and marl.

Plants: casting-mechanical (the production of depot materials for the enterprises of cement industry), cement, instrument-making (ship instruments).

Dairy and meat farming and poultry keeping prevail in agriculture. Potato, vegetable, fruit and berry growing is developed. Oats, barley and wheat are also grown in the Katav-Ivanovsk region.