The History of Tyumen in Photos

A tale about the city through photographs and stories.
This website is not just an archive, but a kind of “time machine” assembled from photographs, negatives, and slides. We invite you to stop for a moment and see how the Siberian capital has evolved over the past century and a half. This is a living history captured by chronicle photographers.

From the wooden streets of a provincial town to the panoramas of a modern metropolis. As you flip through these frames, you will see how architecture has changed, how fashions came and went, how bridges across the Tura River were built, and how new districts were laid out. You will see the faces of those who raised children, built factories, laid pipelines, and simply lived their ordinary lives.

We invite you on a journey. Compare, learn, reminisce, and be amazed. After all, Tyumen is not only the “gateway to Siberia,” but also a huge photo book that we are flipping through right now.
The project is being implemented using a grant provided by the Public Organization “Russian Cultural Fund” as part of the federal project “Family Values and Cultural Infrastructure” within the framework of the national project “Family.”
Photo exhibition "The History of Tyumen in Photographs"
report from the opening
The History of Tyumen
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1900−1917
The Beginning of the Century
In the first decades of the 20th century, Tyumen remained one of the largest and most developed cities in the Tobolsk Governorate. The city was a trade center; there were many merchants of the first guild, and branches of foreign firms operated there. Local industry was actively developing.
The 21st century
Present Day
In the first decades of the 21st century, Tyumen underwent a radical transformation, shedding its image as the “capital of villages” and transforming into a modern, dynamically developing city. The first decades of the century became a time for Tyumen to lay the foundation for its future status as a major economic and cultural center of Siberia.
1961−1982
Industrial
Development
In the mid‑1960s, the development of the fuel and energy complex began. The city grew rapidly and underwent reconstruction. Wooden houses with stove heating were replaced by blocks of standard panel buildings. A new airport, "Roshchino," was built.
1924−1945
Industrialization
In the pre‑war decades, Tyumen experienced rapid industrialization, which became the main focus of its development. Key factories were reconstructed — "Mekhanik", the shipyard, and the "Plamya" factory. New facilities appeared: a woodworking plant, and a railway line was built to the timber mills.
In the 19th century, Tyumen transformed from a quiet provincial town into a major industrial and commercial center of Siberia. It was often called "the gateway to Siberia."
The 19th century
The Gateway to Siberia
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Tyumen, like the entire country, found itself in a prolonged transitional period. In the first half of the 1990s, Tyumen faced a systemic crisis, but compared to other regions, the decline in production there was less severe. The potential and raw material resources laid down during the Soviet era helped Tyumen survive the "wild 90s" and lay the foundation for future growth.
1983-2000
The Time of Change
Tyumen began to change rapidly, transforming from a provincial town with a rural appearance into a major industrial center. This period became a time of active housing construction and the beginning of the transformation of the urban environment. The population increased significantly.
1946−1960
The Post‑war Thaw
In April 1918, Tyumen became the center of the newly formed Tyumen Governorate, but Bolshevik rule did not last long. In July, the city was occupied by the troops of the Siberian Provisional Government and the White Czechs. Soviet power returned in the summer of 1919.
1918−1923
Civil War
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