Vladimir Valentinovich Fortunatov,
Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor, St. Petersburg State University of Railway Engineering of Emperor Alexander I, St. Petersburg, Russia, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
A House for Students: from the History of the Nicholas Dormitory Named after the August Chairman of the Siberian Railway Committee for Students of the Emperor Alexander I Railway Engineer Institute
DOI: 10.31518/2618-9100-2025-4-4
There were few student dormitories in pre-revolutionary St. Petersburg. The police considered them places where revolutionary, anti-government sentiments spread. The article examines the history of the construction and functioning of the Nicholas Dormitory Named after the August Chairman of the Siberian Railway Committee for Students of the Emperor Alexander I Railway Engineer Institute. In connection with the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway (since 1891), the need for highly qualified specialists has increased dramatically. Admission to the only institute in the country that trained railway engineers was increased. On the initiative of S.Y. Witte and on the basis of the decision of Emperor Alexander III, with money allocated by the state and collected by railway joint-stock companies, a comfortable dormitory was built in 1894−1895, in which mostly undergraduates lived. In the dormitory, the rooms for one person had comfortable furniture, bed linen, electric lighting, steam heating, and sewerage. The students’ meals were well organized. The material and household amenities inside the university were cheaper for the students who lived in the dormitory than outside the walls of the alma mater. The Institute's management supervised and supported the dormitory and was proud of this successful social project. The funds remaining after the dormitory was put into operation made up the endowment fund. It was constantly replenished. Scholarships were paid out of it, financial assistance was provided to students, and the work of the student cafeteria was subsidized, which was very popular with young people. The building of the former dormitory is well preserved and has undergone internal renovation. But the former dining room called Oak Hall is one of the best venues for interesting events in the life of the University.
Publishing: 28/08/2025
The article has been received by the editor on 06/02/2025
How to cite: Fortunatov V.V. A House for Students: from the History of the Nicholas Dormitory Named after the August Chairman of the Siberian Railway Committee for Students of the Emperor Alexander I Railway Engineer Institute // Historical Courier, 2025, No. 4 (42), pp. 65−76. [Available online: http://istkurier.ru/data/2025/ISTKURIER-2025-4-04.pdf]
Links: Issue 4 2025
Keywords: charity; target capital; railway transport; St. Petersburg Institute of Railway Engineers; students; dormitory; scholarships