(Source: http://fotokto.ru/photo/view/1758969.html)

History

Malykovka village appeared here in the XVII century, after the tsar granted the land to monasteries. The peasants were mainly engaged in fishing. In addition, Malykovka performed the function of fortress guard - its task was to guard merchant sailing ships.

In 1710 Peter I gifted a village to his favorite Menshikov, who owned these lands before his disgrace. In 1780 Malykovka receives the status of a district city, it was renamed in Volgsk first, and then in Volsk. At the beginning of the XIX century Volsk become a rich merchant city, famous due to trade in grain. At the end of XIX century the construction of cement plants began there, and Volsk soon acquired a reputation of one of the largest centers of the cement industry of Russia. The peculiarity of the plants was the use of pure white limestone mined in the vicinity of the city.

Today the city, along with Novorossiysk, is a major supplier of cement. In the skies over Volsk you can see silhouettes of balloons and airships. They conduct trials in the aeronautical tests in the center GLITs named after Chkalov. It is the only military Aeronautics Research Institute in Russia. It was built in 1957 and it still works. Volsk was chosen to host the dislocation of aeronautic part because the city is located on the 52th degree of latitude, this line was crossing the territory of the USSR in its widest part. Here the officers can get a rare military specialty - the pilot of airship. Furthermore, various studies of airspace are conducted here.

Pecularities

Volsk station is actually outside the city called as railway station Volsk-2. There is an old and very beautiful place in the Privolskaya station, but it does not work as a passenger one. Weekends, there is a market on the Trade Square, where you can buy the freshest products, including (in the season) Khvalynsky famous apples.

In the skies over Volsk you can see silhouettes of balloons and airships. So they conduct trials in the aeronautical test center GLITs named after Chkalov, the only one in Russia. In fact, Volsk stands at 52 degrees of north latitude - this is the line that crossed the territory of the USSR in its widest part. In VITs you can learn to pilot an airship. There is Higher Military School of Logistics in Volsk, where specialists in economics and business side of army life are trained. Officers of food and clothing service come out of the walls of VVVUT (Volsk Military Institute of Provisions). The territory of the school takes an area as much as 70 hectares, more than the Vatican area. It is a city within a city; there is their own sports complex, Palace of Culture, laboratories and training areas.

Today Volsk School of Logistics is a branch of the St. Petersburg Academy of Logistics and Transport. Many travelers on business visited Volsk. There is a good choice of hotels for a small town. In addition to the former "Cement" there is, for example, "Mayak" and "Titan". You may have a good dinner in the cafe "Blues" on the Volodarskaya Street: from 12:00 to 15:00 you may be offered a business lunch, while at other times the average bill without alcohol will be 500 rubles.

What to bring from Volsk. Tourists visiting the city praise candy of Volsk dairy factory which resembles a simple candy called "Korovka".  Volsk "Candy" is delicious and, most importantly, absolutely harmless - only milk, cream and sugar are included in its composition.

Volsk is called as "a piece of St. Petersburg" in tourist brochures and sayings but in fact there is nothing in common between the cities. Maybe one common thing they have is a clear plan, which Volsk received after large fire that destroyed almost 400 houses in 1792: in the plan the old town forms an equilateral triangle with the squares of Freedom, Equality and Trade on the tops. But the similarity ends here.

Petersburg is flat as the palm, and Volsk is hilly, and here is its main beauty. The city stands on the banks of the Volga River. The mountains here and there are covered with oak forests and meadows of the steppe feather grass, changing color depending on the time of year. In spring, they bloom, in summer they delight the eye by juicy green, in autumn they are gleaming by scarlet and gold colors.

Volga in Volsk spreads wide as the sea, and its embankment is a typical promenade of the XIX century. Shady asphalt paths go to the embankment resting against the pier, and it is strange that in summer you cannot see any fishnet ladies' parasols on this river bank. Instead of them there is an expressive monument of sailors of Volsk red river fleet of 1918. Volga gave the name to Volsk - originally the city was called as Volgskom. Despite its modest size, it was quite prospered: merchants of Volsk successfully sold bread, and at the end of the XIX century four cement plants were built here - also thanks to the chalk mountains. Volsk was considered as a cement capital of Russia. Stone buildings in the Centre reminds about  that prosperity: strong two-storied mansions with columns, intricate decoration of facades, the impressive Trinity Cathedral on Liberty Square, reconstructed in 2005 and two well-dressed Fire towers of early century. High-quality cement is still produced here that generates some environmental problems.

Different era of the Soviet period is sensed in the city park near the shopping area. There are monuments to the victims of war and of repression, and also a unique obelisk in honor of the first Soviet Constitution.