General plan of the Shchelykovo estate in Kostroma province. State Memorial and Natural Museum-Reserve A.N.

A village in the Kostroma region, 120 km from Kostroma and 15 km from the Volga River and the city of Kineshma.

Before the Ostrovskys, the owner of the estate was Major General F. M. Kutuzov, the Kostroma leader of the nobility (1788-1800). In the Shchelykovsky estate of Kutuzov there were 40 peasant households, 107 male revision souls, in the estate itself there were more than fifty (59) household servants.

There is reason to believe that the Kutuzovs built Shchelykovo, sparing no expense, as the central estate of a large estate, erecting stone buildings in it. Indirect evidence of this is the Church of St. Nicholas on Berezhki. This unusual and architecturally and picturesquely remarkable church could only have been built by a very rich landowner. Legend has it that since Kutuzov’s wife was a Catholic, the church has two floors and two aisles: the lower one is Orthodox, the upper one is Catholic. And in the architecture of the church, the styles of these two faiths intricately merge.

The version that there was a large stone house located elsewhere on the estate, but that it died from a fire has indirect confirmation. In the upper Shchelykov Park, next to the two-story gazebo, a scattering of ancient bricks and traces of the bases of large columns have been preserved. And it is unlikely that the “old” wooden Shchelykov house could satisfy the Kutuzovs as their main home during the heyday of their material well-being. After all, he is typical of the poor middle-class nobility. Perhaps it was built as temporary, but due to the radically changed circumstances of the Kutuzov family, it became permanent.

The Shchelykovo estate was bought by the father of the playwright N.F. Ostrovsky. Nikolai Fedorovich was born in Kostroma on May 6, 1796 in the family of a priest. He graduated from the Kostroma Theological Seminary and then from the Moscow Theological Academy. Having no calling to church activities, Nikolai Fedorovich entered the civilian class, began serving as an official in the judicial department and successfully combined his service in Moscow judicial institutions with private legal practice, which brought him sufficient funds. The popularity of the energetic, educated, talented lawyer gave him the opportunity in 1841 to leave public service and devote himself only to private studies.

In the 40s, N.F. Ostrovsky was the chairman of several large competitions - the lower courts of the Commercial Court, which heard the cases of insolvent debtors and bankrupt merchants. At the very beginning of the 40s, Nikolai Fedorovich owned seven houses in Moscow. Most likely, he would continue to invest his growing capital in apartment buildings. But his second wife, Baroness Emilia Andreevna von Tesin, whom he married in 1863 (his first wife died in 1831), did not like the life of a lawyer. She was disgusted by the constant crowding of her husband's clients - townspeople and merchants - in their house. And the onset of Nikolai Fedorovich’s ailments required a calmer lifestyle.

So N.F. Ostrovsky decided to leave the practice of law and take up agriculture. Since 1846, he began buying estates at auction. He bought four estates in the Kostroma and Nizhny Novgorod provinces, which included 279 serfs. Among these estates, the largest is Shchelykovo. Valued by the police officer at 20,820 rubles 30 kopecks in silver and purchased by Nikolai Fedorovich on July 28, 1847 for 15,010 rubles, it was located in the Kineshma district of the Kostroma province. In all the villages of this estate there were 111 revision male souls.

In Shchelykovo, in addition to the main house, there were three outbuildings in which the courtyard people were housed. All the necessary ancillary premises were also in good condition: a large stone horse yard, a two-story barn, a feed barn, a chaff barn, three cellars, a bathhouse, a stone forge, etc. Not having the cash to pay for all the estates, Nikolai Fedorovich after purchasing each estate borrowed money against it in the safe treasury under an obligation for 37 years. In total, he borrowed 15,540 rubles for all the estates.

Returning in 1847 from the village of Shchelykov, which he had just acquired, Nikolai Fedorovich enthusiastically told his children about it. His stories captivated everyone, and especially his eldest son, Alexander Nikolaevich. Alexander Nikolaevich wanted to visit this very estate of his father as soon as possible. And when in April 1848 the whole family, except for brother Mikhail, was going to the estate, he filed a petition to the Commercial Court, where he then served, for a leave of absence for 28 days to travel “due to domestic circumstances to the Kostroma province.” Having received leave and a passport, the playwright set off on the road on April 23 with his father. They rode horses in three carriages.

Alexander Nikolaevich liked Shchelykovo so much that instead of the 28 days of vacation required there, he lived there until the fall and was forever fascinated by the beauty and freedom of the estate, the splendor of its surroundings. Ostrovsky first arrived in Shchelykovo on the afternoon of May 1, 1848. The evening of the next day he was already entering his immediate impressions into his diary. “From the first time,” wrote Alexander Nikolaevich, “I didn’t like it... This morning we went to inspect the places for game. The places are amazing. Game abyss. Shchelykovo did not appear to me yesterday, probably because I had previously built my own Shchelykovo in my imagination. Today I looked at it, and the real Shchelykovo is as much better than the imaginary one as nature is better than the dream.” The whole Ostrovsky family liked the new estate.

Very pleased with the purchased estate, Nikolai Fedorovich made it his temporary (summer), and then, apparently from 1851, his permanent residence. Having finally settled in Shchelykovo, the newly-minted landowner is registered as a Kostroma nobleman. Nikolai Fedorovich became a landowner, a serf owner, not only legally, but also in essence of his views on life. Having taken possession of Shchelykov, he energetically began to transform the estate into a profitable commercial enterprise.

Feeling the approach of death due to his illness, Nikolai Fedorovich wrote a testamentary disposition in December 1852, according to which Shchelykovo was transferred to his wife Emilia Andreevna Ostrovskaya with the children born from her marriage. The children from the first marriage - Alexander, Mikhail and Sergei - were given a small estate of 30 souls in the Soligalichsky district of the Kostroma province and two small wooden houses in Moscow. The playwright lived in one of these houses.

Emilia Andreevna Ostrovskaya was unable to maintain the estate's economy at the level achieved by her husband. From a profitable, growing estate, as it was under Nikolai Fedorovich, Shchelykovo gradually declined and turned into a neglected one. In 1858, there were only 15 servants left, and in 1859, the owner Shchelykova had only 9 servants. The estate was clearly in deep decline. Alexander Nikolaevich and his brother Mikhail Nikolaevich knew that Emilia Andreevna was burdened by the estate. Negotiations between the brothers and their stepmother ended with her agreement to sell the estate for 7,357 rubles 50 kopecks in installments over three years.

When buying the estate in 1867, Alexander Nikolaevich and Mikhail Nikolaevich Ostrovsky dreamed of a cultural transformation of its economy and, in connection with this, had high hopes of an economic nature. The initial year of management in Shchelykovo did not bring promising results. But these results did not weaken, but strengthened their economic energy. At first, Alexander Nikolaevich delved into all the details of the farm. On his initiative, old office buildings were repaired and new ones were built, the land was fertilized, the best varieties of wheat seeds and grass cereals were bought in Moscow, the breed of livestock was improved, new horses were purchased, a new garden was planted, an oil mill was built, etc. If field and livestock farms brought only grief to Alexander Nikolaevich, the flower and vegetable gardens delighted him, but they were never considered as possible sources of income.

Ostrovsky carried an enthusiastic love of nature throughout his life. Having lived in Shchelykovo in 1848 for only three days, Ostrovsky wrote in his diary on May 4: “I am beginning to feel the village. Our bird cherry tree has bloomed, of which there is a lot near the house, and its delightful smell somehow introduces me to nature in a shorter way - this is Russian fleur d'orange. I revel in the fragrant air of the garden for several hours. And then nature becomes clearer to me, all the smallest details , which would not have been noticed before or would have been considered superfluous, now come to life and ask to be reproduced..." Shchelykovo had a beneficial and healing effect on the playwright. The purest fragrant air, silence, virgin nature calmed the nerves, healed the body, dispelled anxieties and worries.

The daily routine in Shchelykovo was usually as follows: at eight or nine o'clock - morning tea; at one-half past two - lunch; at four and a half to five - afternoon tea; at eight o'clock - dinner. We went to bed early - no later than ten o'clock. However, sometimes this order was violated depending on the presence of guests, planned long walks, picnics, fishing trips to the Meru River, etc.

“In his estate, Alexander Nikolaevich wore a Russian costume: an untucked shirt, trousers, long boots, a gray short jacket and a wide-brimmed hat” (from the memoirs of K.V. Zagorsky).

Favorite entertainment on the estate was walking around the surrounding area, hunting, picking mushrooms and berries, and fishing, where Alexander Nikolaevich displayed extensive knowledge and skill. Ostrovsky was a passionate fisherman: he often sat with a fishing rod on the Kueksha River near the mill. And when he became old, he preferred to fish in a pond with an island, not far from his house. His favorite leisure activity, besides fishing, was wood carving. He worked on the mezzanine of the “new house”, where a lathe and a special table with a vice for sawing were installed. He generously gave photo frames and other items he cut to friends.

But even in Shchelykovo, Ostrovsky could not afford complete rest, creative inactivity: both due to the needs of his writing talent and for material reasons. Thanks to the care of the playwright and his brother Mikhail Nikolaevich, the Shchelykov library was very respectable. Its basis was the book collection of Nikolai Fedorovich. In 1868, Mikhail Nikolaevich sent the first parcel of books worth 11 pounds, and then these parcels became systematic. The library was also replenished by the playwright himself. On its shelves one could see books on history, Russian life, agriculture, gardening and horticulture, but the first place was occupied by Russian and foreign magazines, literary almanacs and collections. The Shchelykov Library clearly demonstrates the playwright’s versatile interests and the great culture of the owner of the estate.

Years passed, the writer’s health became worse, his strength diminished, but his work increased. The children were growing up and there was no other means of subsistence other than income from plays. Added to the desire to do as much as possible for Russian theatrical art was the constant need for money, which forced him to work without rest both in Moscow and in Shchelykovo.

After the difficult winter of 1875, the playwright wrote to A. A. Potekhin: “I now have only one dream: to somehow get to Kineshma, in order, if not to restore, then at least to support the declining strength with fresh spring air.” In 1880 - to N. Ya. Solovyov: “My health... is in an unenviable position. Our only hope is for Shchelykovo, if only we can somehow survive until spring.” Shchelykovo in most cases lived up to expectations. No matter how hard the work was, life in the village, walks, and fishing distracted from life’s hardships and restored strength. But the work did not decrease.

In material terms, Shchelykovo did not live up to the hopes that the Ostrovsky brothers had placed on it. Alexander Nikolaevich, who worked so diligently on the estate in the first years after purchasing it, lost interest in these activities and gradually transferred management of the farm to his wife Maria Vasilievna. Since the second half of the 70s, the affairs of the estate have been completely in the hands of his wife.

It is known that Alexander Nikolaevich really wanted to legitimize his children from his civil marriage with Maria Vasilievna, but at the same time he did not dare to formalize this marriage for a long time. Loving his children, the playwright did not hesitate to cast his lot with their mother. After the death of Agafya Ivanovna, the playwright's first wife, almost two years passed before he decided to take this act. Ostrovsky’s thoughts ended with him officially formalizing his civil marriage with Maria Vasilievna. But at the same time, even after many years, she did not achieve the complete, unconditional favor of either her relatives or her husband’s closest friends.

There were rarely days in Shchelykovo when only the playwright’s family lived there. Being a sociable person and in love with his estate, Ostrovsky persistently invited friends to visit, and they willingly responded to these invitations. Calling Shchelykovo “Kostroma Switzerland,” the playwright said that “you won’t find a better corner anywhere, and was surprised at people going abroad to look for the beauties of nature, when there are so many of them at home.” For his brother, co-owner of the estate of M. N. Ostrovsky, a house was built, which later received the name “guest”, since Mikhail Nikolaevich came to Shchelykovo infrequently, and guests were accommodated in this house. This house has not survived at present. In addition to the siblings M. N. Ostrovsky and S. N. Ostrovsky, the playwright’s half-brothers Andrei and Peter and half-sisters Nadezhda and Maria were also frequent guests.

On the name days of the owner of the estate and his family members, the park was decorated with colored lanterns. They placed light bowls near the house and lit rockets. The illuminated manor in the forest darkness seemed fabulous. Theatrical performances were adapted to these days, which attracted residents of nearby villages. Performances were staged in a hay barn in a meadow, behind a pond, or in a barn. Guests Shchelykova, Maria Vasilyevna, peasants and servants took part in them. Shchelykov's performances invariably enjoyed great success.

The house-museum of the Russian playwright Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky in Zamoskvorechye is a branch of the theater museum. It was in this small house on Malaya Ordynka that Sasha was born back in 1823.

Ostrovsky considered himself a true Muscovite and did a lot for the social and literary development of the capital and Russia as a whole. In Moscow, at the Maly Theater, forty-six plays based on his works were staged during A. N. Ostrovsky’s lifetime. On his initiative, an artistic circle, a public organization of writers and composers, was created. Descendants call the writer the Columbus of old Moscow. Therefore, the main theme of the exhibition of the house-museum in Zamoskvorechye was the Moscow theme in the life of this wonderful person. And the atmosphere in the museum fully reflects the social environment in which the writer was born and which nourished his unique creativity.

The playwright's father, Alexander Nikolaevich, was from the poor clergy class, after the seminary he decided to enter the public service, and then was a private lawyer. Ostrovsky's mother, Lyubov Ivanovna, was the daughter of a sexton, a low-ranking minister in the Christian Church. The interiors of the house are poorly furnished. The bedroom and office contain modest furniture of that time - armchairs, a secretary, a bed. There is a portrait of my father in a velvet frame, on the table there is a book and a melted candle. But the bookcase in the library has rich content - classical genres, periodicals, the best plays of that time. In a cozy bedroom on the bedside table there is a playwright’s box, painted by a talented artist. All these exhibits seem to resurrect the life of those years and help to better, more accurately imagine the environment in which the brilliant playwright spent his childhood and from where he was able to draw his talent to some extent.

The red living room in the Ostrovsky house-museum is very interesting. Here the writer read his scandalous plays to his friends, which excited Moscow and aroused the displeasure of the authorities. A staircase with wooden railings leads to the second floor. There the guest finds himself in old Moscow: in the engravings, drawings and paintings of that time the Kremlin, Kuznetsky Bridge, Alexander Garden, Maryina Roshcha and other unique places dear to the writer’s heart are visible. There is also a model of the Maly Theater, made in 1840. It reproduces with precision worthy of the best jewelry work not only the external appearance, the facade of this iconic building, but also the interior spaces, the auditorium and the stage. There are photographs of famous actors, actresses, political and cultural figures of those years. One of the rooms is entirely dedicated to the history of the creation of the play “The Thunderstorm”.

The Ostrovsky House Museum in Zamoskvorechye was opened to visitors in 1984. Near the city estate there is a stunning garden that begins to bloom in early spring. It bursts with colors and aromas until late autumn. Green tree branches lean toward the windows of a cozy old house, preserving the mood and atmosphere of a measured life. This is how it was here during the life of the great playwright, and this is how the house remains today.

Seeing Ostrovsky’s estate in Zamoskvorechye will be interesting for both adults and children. The first one will feel the special power of this place, and the child will be able to have fun. For this purpose, holiday excursions are often held in the house museum. And if you look here on Christmas Eve, you will definitely see a Christmas tree decorated the same way it was done for little Sasha Ostrovsky.

Cm.
Internet:
www.site/M2331 - official page
State Memorial and Natural Museum-Reserve A.N. Ostrovsky "Schelykovo" - W1684, official site museumschelykovo.ru/

Local Attractions:
Blue House - New estate of the Ostrovsky-Chatelains
Yarilina Valley with the Blue Key
Sanatorium Shchelykovo STD RF is located on the territory of the museum-reserve

Partner organizations:
Museum named after B.M. Kustodieva - M1510

Storage units:
31669, of which 28770 are fixed assets items

Major exhibition projects:
Participation in the exhibition VKHNRTS im. Academician I.E. Grabar. "95 years of scientific restoration: discoveries and everyday life." Moscow, September 2013
“Two writers - two anniversaries” (to the 190th anniversary of the birth of A.N. Ostrovsky and the 195th anniversary of the birth of I.S. Turgenev). A joint project with the Spasskoye-Lutovinovo Museum-Reserve. Shchelykovo - Spasskoye-Lutovinovo, April 2013 - February 2014
“Dear Sir, Alexander Nikolaevich...” (to the 190th anniversary of the birth of A.N. Ostrovsky). Kostroma State Historical, Architectural and Art Museum-Reserve. Kostroma, November-December 2013

Traveling and exchange exhibitions:
"Artists of the Theater of A.N. Ostrovsky." The works of outstanding stage designers of the 20th century are presented: B.M. Kustodieva, V.E. Egorova, A.A. Osmerkina, V.F. Ryndina, G.V. Aleksi-Meskhishvili and other authors, revealing the individual style of the masters, and reflecting the characteristic signs of the time in which they created
"Volga in the life and work of A.N. Ostrovsky." Paintings, graphics and documents are presented that reveal the creative and personal connections of the playwright with the Volga cities and the inhabitants of the province.
"Kostroma province during the times of A.N. Ostrovsky." History of the Kostroma region - the homeland of A.N.’s ancestors. Ostrovsky, is presented on historical documents, maps and city plans of the 19th century, rare photographs and books

Ostrovsky and Shchelykovo (emphasis on the “o”) are almost the same as, for example, Pushkin and Mikhailovskoye. And not at all because both writers spent a lot of time on their estates, but because the estates, far from Moscow and its “worldly noise,” served as a source of inspiration, poetry, truthful images and precise phrases.

Interactive map:

Shchelykovo was not the Ostrovsky family estate: it was owned by the Kutuzov family, and only in 1847 the estate was bought by the writer’s father, a native of Kostroma. After his death, Alexander Nikolaevich tried to actively engage in farming in order to have a constant income, but these attempts were in vain, which cannot be said about literary work: in Shchelykovo, the playwright successfully worked on 19 plays, and it was on stage that many of them were staged for the first time.

However, everything in the estate is conducive to collaboration with the muse - and first of all, the natural landscapes on the banks of the small river Kuekshi, discreet, but very subtle. It is not surprising that it was Shchelykovo that, already in Soviet times, was chosen to house the Maly Theater Holiday House, which was later transformed into a sanatorium for the Union of Theater Workers (this is how the holiday house located next to the estate is officially called now).

The modest but elegant main house (today the Ostrovsky House Museum), surrounded by a park with cozy benches, bridges and gazebos, harmoniously blends into the natural beauty. On the territory of the estate there is also the Literary and Theater Museum in a modern building and the Blue House, which belonged to the daughter of the playwright. Today it serves as the residence of the Snow Maiden (Santa Claus’s assistant also has a residence permit in Kostroma, where she has her own).

The memory of Ostrovsky is also preserved in the nearby village of Nikolo-Berezhki: here, in the graveyard of the St. Nicholas Church, the playwright himself, his father, wife and daughter are buried. And in the House of Ivan Sobolev, a serf cabinetmaker who made furniture for the estate, an ethnographic museum has been opened.

Useful:

You can view the exhibitions either independently or with a guided tour (guided tours are offered for groups of 3 or more people); Please specify the subject and cost. You can get to Shchelykovo by car from Kostroma through the village of Ostrovskoye or by bus Kostroma - Kineshma or Kostroma - Ostrovskoye (in the second case, in Ostrovskoye you will have to change to a bus to Kineshma). There is a road from Ivanovo: by car through Kineshma or by bus Ivanovo - Kineshma, then Kineshma - Ostrovskoye. Distances to Shchelykovo: from Kostroma 120 km, from Ostrovsky 30 km, from Kineshma 37 km, from Ivanovo 130 km.

Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky first visited Shchelykovo at the age of 25. Then, in May 1848, the estate belonged to Ostrovsky’s father, and the writer himself came here to spend his vacation and was fascinated by the estate. An enthusiastic entry appears in the playwright’s diary: “What rivers, what mountains, what forests!... If this district were near Moscow or St. Petersburg, it would have long ago turned into an endless park, it would have been compared with the best places in Switzerland and Italy.”

Ostrovsky endlessly likes everything: nature, the animals and fish found here in abundance, the local residents, about whom he speaks of “my beloved fellow countrymen,” and the beautiful, comfortable house. Over time, the writer’s feeling of admiration for this region did not disappear; moreover, it grew into deep affection.

A.N. Ostrovsky becomes a frequent guest of Shchelykov, and in
In 1868, after the death of his father, together with his brother Mikhail, he bought the estate from his stepmother E.A. Ostrovsky. This is how he speaks about it in a letter to a friend: “My brother and I bought... our magnificent Shchelykovo; here is my shelter..." Since then
the writer regularly comes here with his family and lives in Shchelykov three to five months a year.

Being strapped for money, Ostrovsky hopes
improve your financial situation by taking up housekeeping. He seriously takes on new things for himself: he repairs buildings, builds an oil mill, acquires
agricultural machinery, buys seeds, breeds purebred livestock…. In an effort to master a new area of ​​knowledge, the playwright reads publications about agriculture: “Agricultural Newspaper”, “Rural Improvement”, etc.

However, the estate was never able to provide much income. Only the garden and vegetable garden brought joy to the writer. Vegetables, berries, greenhouse artichokes, watermelons and melons grown on the estate were a good help for the large Ostrovsky family. The harvest from his own garden also served as a treat for numerous guests of the estate. Having somewhat lost interest in agriculture, the playwright entrusts his wife Maria Vasilievna to take care of the estate and
to the manager.

Life on the estate was good for the writer. Here he regained his strength and improved his health. So, Ostrovsky wrote: “I came here in a very unenviable position... Now, thanks to the good air, and most importantly, the bath, I feel fresher.” While vacationing in Shchelykovo, the playwright loved to walk around the surrounding area, hunt, pick mushrooms and berries, and, of course, fish. Fishing was Ostrovsky’s passion: fishing in the Kueksha River, spear fishing in Sendeg, and sometimes, as part of a large company, using a seine on Mera. The writer knew all the intricacies of fishing and almost always returned home with a catch. Ostrovsky also rested at the carpenter’s workbench: he sawed out thin openwork frames with a jigsaw, made boxes, made knives for cutting papers...

Guests were given a whole house to stay in, which was called a “guest house.” This small wooden house with a mezzanine was built for Ostrovsky’s brother Mikhail Nikolaevich, co-owner of the estate. However, his brother rarely visited Shchelykov, and guests were accommodated in his house. There was also a library and a carpentry workshop.

While living in Shchelykovo, Ostrovsky actively participated in the public life of Kineshma district. He was an honorary justice of the peace and a member of the Kineshma district zemstvo assembly. The writer did his work so diligently and well that he was elected by the local nobles to the post of district leader. Ostrovsky refused
take this honorary post due to employment.

Coming here in the first years, Alexander Nikolaevich spent one or two months resting, and then started working. However, gradually his work began to take more and more time. In his letter, the playwright says: “I do not travel from Moscow to the village and back, but from office to office and I see nature only as I pass.”

Shchelykov's nature served as a source of inspiration for him, and communication with people made it possible to find plots and images for plays and enriched their language. The playwright spoke with residents
surrounding villages and hamlets, walked at peasant holidays, listened carefully to living folk speech, and popular expressions, proverbs, sayings and rare words -
wrote it down.

It is known that Ostrovsky worked in Shchelykovo on 19
works. The entire play “Late Love” (1873) was created here. “Simplicity is Enough for Every Wise Man” (1868), “There Was Not a Penny, But Suddenly Altyn” (1871), “The Last Sacrifice” (1877), “Dowry” (1878), were almost completely written. "The Heart Is Not a Stone" (1879). Work began on the plays “Warm Heart” (1868), “Forest” (1870), “Truth is good, but happiness is better” (1876), “Talents and Admirers” (1881), "Handsome Man" (1882), "Without Guilt
guilty" (1883).

The hard work completely undermined the writer’s health. June 2, 1886 at eleven o'clock in the morning Ostrovsky's heart
could not stand it: he died at his desk from an attack of angina pectoris (as angina pectoris was called in the old days). On the last day of his life, the writer was translating Shakespeare’s tragedy “Antony and Cleopatra” and reading the magazine “Russian Thought”.

Alexander Nikolaevich Ostrovsky was buried not far from his beloved estate, in the graveyard of the Church of St. Nicholas in Berezhki.

Tsvetaev Museum— As for the Feodosia period of Anastasia Tsvetaeva’s life, it should be noted that it was extremely fruitful. Anastasia Ivanovna is an excellent memoirist, publicist, and reviewer. In Feodosia she began writing fairy tales. Unfortunately, only three of Anastasia’s tales have survived; the rest were lost during the arrest.