#### Student Town „Giant“9 photos

The Student Town of “Giant”

Let’s begin our brief overview with the main building of this town—the “Giant” dormitory complex.

The design for this building (1928) was created by architects A.G. Molokin and G.D. Ikonnikov. Its original name was “Dormitory No. 1 for Proletarian Students.”


The building consists of ten five- and six-story sections connected by corridors and passageways.

It was completed in 1931.

When constructing this dormitory, a comprehensive plan for maintaining the health of the students was developed. This included facilities such as baths, laundries, disinfection equipment, and specialized rooms for treatment. In addition, a small isolation ward was set up for students with minor skin conditions who did not require hospitalization. All new residents were given medical examinations, and regular monthly check-ups were conducted.

It should be noted that such arrangements were more the exception than the rule in student dormitories at that time. The situation described in a 1923 survey in Kharkiv provides a vivid illustration: “Rooms are overcrowded, and basic sanitation facilities are completely absent. Several parts of the roof are leaking, and the rooms are damp. The forced overcrowding makes it impossible to meet even minimal sanitary standards, which contributes to the spread of skin diseases and tuberculosis.”

Photo from 1941: All buildings in the town are still intact.

During the war, the dormitory complex suffered severe damage. Reconstruction began in 1949, and by the 1951/1952 academic year, the first four sections were put back into use.

During the restoration process, the building was renovated (architects N.M. Podgorny, 1950; A.M. Pokorny, 1957), resulting in some changes to its original architectural design.

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