Slutsk. The postal station.
Landmark
Belarus, Minsk region, Slutsk, Lenin St., 159.
Description
On the outskirts of Slutsk, along the ancient Moscow-Warsaw road, there is a unique architectural ensemble of the 19th century – a postal station. Built in 1846 according to a standard design, this complex, which has partially survived to the present day, now serves commercial and residential purposes.
The Slutsk postal station consists of four single-storey buildings forming an enclosed interior space. The central element of the architectural composition is the station house. The exterior decor, decorated with pilasters, gives it the features of late classicism. The postal station complex also includes two outbuildings and a stable.
Categories
Historical
Architectural monument
Comments
Reviews to the Place
1Ольга Ерёменко
03.06.2025
A postal station in Slutsk.
At the end of the 18th century, after the partitions of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, when a significant part of its territories became part of the Russian Empire, there was an urgent need to establish reliable road links between the central regions and the new lands. The Moscow-Warsaw highway, which passed through Slutsk, became an important part of this transport infrastructure.
The construction of this highway in the 1840s contributed to the development of the region, and also led to a partial change in the historical medieval layout of the city.
During this period, at the exit from Slutsk, according to the "exemplary project" of 1846, a postal station complex was erected.
The complex, made of brick and wood, included: the main building (there were rooms for travelers, the station caretaker and the registration of postal documents); two symmetrically arranged wings (one for the coachmen who provided the movement of mail and passengers, the other for the station's household needs); brick walls with gates (they connected the buildings and formed a rectangular courtyard); the stable building (closed the courtyard and it was intended for the maintenance of horses that provided the work of the postal station). All the buildings of the complex were single-storied.
Today, the historic buildings of the Slutsk postal station, once enlivened by the voices of travelers and coachmen, have been adapted to modern needs: shops and living quarters are located here, recalling an important stage in the history of the development of the transport infrastructure of Belarus.