Mezen () is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and the

administrative center An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgiu ...

Mezensky District Mezensky District () is an administrative district (raion), one of the administrative divisions of Arkhangelsk Oblast, twenty-one in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia.Law #65-5-OZ As a subdivisions of Russia#Municipal divisions, municipal division, it is ...

Arkhangelsk Oblast Arkhangelsk Oblast ( rus, Архангельская область, p=ɐrˈxanɡʲɪlʲskəjə ˈobɫəsʲtʲ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It includes the Arctic Ocean, Arctic archipelagos of Franz ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, located on the right bank of the Mezen River close to the point where it flows into the

White Sea The White Sea (; Karelian language, Karelian and ; ) is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea located on the northwest coast of Russia. It is surrounded by Karelia to the west, the Kola Peninsula to the north, and the Kanin Peninsula to the nort ...

. Population:

History

The settlement at the location of the present-day Mezen was founded in the 16th century and was known as Okladnikova Sloboda (). It was subsequently developed into the trading center of the Mezen River valley where annual trade fairs were held. Besides the trade, the main occupations of the Mezen inhabitants were fishery and seal hunting. In 1780, Okladnikova Sloboda was merged with the nearby settlement of Kuznetsovskaya Sloboda into the town of Mezen. In 1784, Mezen became the seat of Mezensky Uyezd of Vologda Viceroyalty. In 1796, the territory was transferred to

Arkhangelsk Governorate Arkhangelsk Governorate () was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire and the Russian SFSR, which existed from 1796 until 1929. Its seat was in Arkhangelsk. The governorate was located in the north of the Russ ...

. In 1929, several governorates were merged into Northern Krai. On July 15, 1929, the uyezds were abolished and Mezen became the

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Mezen serves as the

. As an administrative division, it is, together with the

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

of Semzha, incorporated within Mezensky District as the

town of district significance Town of district significance is an administrative division of a district in a federal subject of Russia. It is equal in status to a selsoviet or an urban-type settlement of district significance, but is organized around a town (as opposed to a ...

of Mezen. As a municipal division, the town of district significance of Mezen, together with the territory of Lampozhensky Selsoviet (which comprises four rural localities) in Mezensky District, are incorporated within Mezensky Municipal District as Mezenskoye Urban Settlement.Law #258-vneoch.-OZ

Restricted access

The northern part of Mezensky District, including Mezen itself, is included into the border security zone, intended to protect the borders of Russia from unwanted activity. In order to visit Mezen, a permit issued by the local

Federal Security Service The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation �СБ, ФСБ России (FSB) is the principal security agency of Russia and the main successor agency to the Soviet Union's KGB; its immediate predecessor was the Federal Counterin ...

department is required.

Economy

Industry

Economic activity in Mezen is currently limited to food industry and mechanical works. The Mezen sawmill and the Mezen sea harbor are both located in Kamenka across the Mezen River.

Transportation

The Mezen River is navigable; however, there is no passenger navigation in Mezen except for the ferry boat to Kamenka. There is an all-season road to

Arkhangelsk Arkhangelsk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia. It lies on both banks of the Northern Dvina near its mouth into the White Sea. The city spreads for over along the ...

(which crosses the Mezen near the village of Kimzha), completed in 2008. During winter, temporary roads ('' zimniks'') are built in snow. Mezen is served by the Mezen Airport, with several weekly flights to Arkhangelsk.

Culture and recreation

Mezen is one of the few former uyezd towns which generally preserved the historical center. There are many former merchant houses, mostly made of wood, in the town center. Mezen hosts the Mezen Regional Museum. A carved epitaph was found in 1957 on a nameless island in the

, done by brothers Ivan and Ondriyan, fishermen from Mezen, who apparently got to the island after the shipwreck and lost any hope to be found again. The epitaph was featured in '' Laughter and Grief by the White Sea'', a

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

traditionally animated

feature film A feature film or feature-length film (often abbreviated to feature), also called a theatrical film, is a film (Film, motion picture, "movie" or simply “picture”) with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole present ...

directed by Leonid Nosyrev made at the Soyuzmultfilm studio.

Climate

Mezen has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Dfc'') with long winters and short summers.

References

Notes

Sources

* {{Authority control Cities and towns in Arkhangelsk Oblast Populated places in Mezensky District Mezensky Uyezd Populated places of Arctic Russia