Balakovo is a Russian town located on the left bank of Volga River (The Saratov reservoir), 161 km to the northeast of Saratov.

It is a river port and a railway station. Its territory is 76 sq km and it has the population of 221.1 thousand people (as of 2012).

History of Balakovo

It was founded in 1762 as a village on Balakovka River by Old Believers who had come back from Poland.

The trade was mostly concentrated on grain, cattle and timber. In 1886 the inventor F.A. Blinov invented and constructed a steam caterpillar in Balakovo. In 1911 Ya.V. Mamin designed a wheel tractor there.

In 1913 it became Balakovo town, its name derived from the river’s name meaning balyk, i.e. “fish” in Turkic.

The town has a few museums, such as Chapayev's House Museum, Town History Museum, and a branch of the Radishchev Art Museum.