Sochi railway station (russian: Сочи) ( ka, სოჭა) is the largest of the four railway stations in

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Со́чи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg) is the largest resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi River, along the Black Sea in Southern Russia, with a population of 466,078 residents, up to 600,000 residents in ...

, and one of the largest railway stations in

Krasnodar Krai Krasnodar Krai (russian: Краснода́рский край, r=Krasnodarsky kray, p=krəsnɐˈdarskʲɪj kraj) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), located in the North Caucasus region in Southern Russia and administratively a part of t ...

. It is part of

North Caucasus Railway North Caucasus Railway ( rus, Северо-Кавказская железная дорога) is a broad gauge Russian railway network that links the Sea of Azov (in the west) and Caspian Sea (in the east). It runs through ten federal subjects ...

and located in the Tsentralny City District of Sochi. It was renovated for the

2014 Winter Olympics , ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'') , nations = 88 , events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , athletes = 2,873 , opening = 7 February 2014 , closing = 23 February 2014 , opened_by = President Vladimir Putin , cauldron = , stadium = Fisht Olympic ...

, alongside Sochi's three other railway stations:

Dagomys Dagomys ( ady, Дэгъумес); is a microdistrict of Sochi, Russia (12 km from the city centre), known for its resorts, vacation spots and tea plantations. It was developed as a resort since before the Russian Revolution, when a botan ...

, Matsesta and Khosta.

History

The place for the construction of the railway terminal was defined in 1913, at the fairgrounds (now the Railway Station Square) in front of the city cemetery (now Zavokzalny memorial complex).
Отрадная новость
'', Сочинский листок №92, 21 марта 1913 г. The present, much larger building of the railway station was designed by

Alexey Dushkin Alexey Nikolayevich Dushkin (24 December 1904 – 8 October 1977) was a Soviet architect, best known for his 1930s designs of the Kropotkinskaya and Mayakovskaya stations of the Moscow Metro. He worked primarily for subway and railroads and ...

. Its construction was started on 13 September 1950 and completed on 10 September 1952, and the luggage section was added in 1956. In the 1950s Sochi played an important role in the Soviet Unions, being a major transit point from Russia to Georgia and the most popular health resort for a large number of ordinary citizens and Communist Party leaders, including

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

. Consequently, the station construction was curated by an unusually large number of ministries, and by Stalin himself. While Dushkin's design was considered elegant by many curators, including Stalin, it was criticised by others for excessive costs. Dushkin built a twin version of the Sochi station in

Simferopol Simferopol () is the second-largest city in the Crimea, Crimean Peninsula. The city, along with the rest of Crimea, is internationally recognised as part of Ukraine, and is considered the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. However, ...

in 1951. In 1975, the Sochi station was included to the Russian list of architectural monuments of federal importance.Железнодорожный вокзал станции “Сочи”
. sochi.com File:SochiTrainstation1916.JPG, 1916 File:Railway station Sochi 1939.jpg, 1939 File:Железнодорожный вокзал (Сочи) 4.jpg, 2012

Interesting facts

* There is a twin-station in

, built by Duskin in 1951.

Layout

The building is 145 m long, 30–50 m wide and 55 m tall from the earth level to the star on the clock tower. The tower is separated from the main building and features a clock of 5 m diameter. The clock's dial is encircled by the

zodiac The zodiac is a belt-shaped region of the sky that extends approximately 8° north or south (as measured in celestial latitude) of the ecliptic, the Sun path, apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year. ...

signs; their sequence is unusual, and Dushkin did not leave a clue to his arrangement. The building has three inner yards with a sculpture and fountains. The sculpture ''Girl with a jug'' is one of the city symbols. It is a copy of the original preserved at the city museum.Братья-близнецы железнодорожные вокзалы Сочи и Симферополя.
liveinternet.ru. 19 March 2014 File:Sochi train station clocktower.jpg, Clock tower

References

{{Reflist Railway stations in Sochi Railway stations in the Russian Empire opened in 1913 Railway stations in Russia opened in 1952 1913 establishments in the Russian Empire Cultural heritage monuments of regional significance in Krasnodar Krai