[club1543502|The Race on Sumskaya Street]. As is well known, Sumskaya Street was not the place where the horse races in Kharkov originated.8 photos

The first section of the first line of the horse-drawn railway was opened on September 12, 1882. It extended from the intersection of Ekaterinoslavskaya Street (Poltava Road) and Aleksandrovskaya Street (Krasnoarmeyskaya Street) to the Birscha market area, located at the boundary between Nikolaevskaya Square and Torgovaya Square (now again Pavlovskaya Square). Four months later, the line was extended through Nikolaevskaya Square, along Moskovskaya Street and Staro-Moskovskaya Street (Moskovsky Prospect) to the Real School. Another seven months later, it was extended further along Staro-Moskovskaya Street and Konna Street (Bohdan Khmelnytskyi Street) to the Horse Market. From the very beginning, it was clear that, in a city where horse-drawn carriages were still the primary mode of transport, this new form of transportation was destined for success. The fare for a direct ride was only 5 kopecks, and with the addition of stop-over services, the cost was even lower—only 3 to 4 times cheaper than using a carriage. Within the first year, over two million passengers were transported; by the second year, this number had increased to more than three million. In May 1885, the service extended to Sumskaya Street: first, a section from Veterinarnaya Street (now Ivanova Street) to Torgovaya Square was opened, and two days later, the entire second line became operational—from Veterinarnaya Street through the city center to Moskaliovka. The postal service also took advantage of this new transportation mode by issuing special cards that allowed people to conveniently communicate about meeting times and locations without relying on a developed telephone network. These cards provided a simple and reliable way to exchange information. We find these cards particularly interesting because they provide valuable insights into the operation of this horse-drawn railway system. For example, they reveal the locations of the stops where passengers could get off on Sumskaya Street and in the city center. It should be noted that fixed stopping points were not established immediately; initially, passengers could get on and off at any point along the route. We will visit these locations later on. Covered pavilions equipped with clocks and schedules were not installed immediately or everywhere; they were only available at the terminal stations and some intermediate stops. On October 8, 1896, it was decided to extend the line further to Nikolaevsky Park (Gorky Park). However, it seems that this plan was never implemented. To date, we have not found any photographs or textual evidence indicating the existence of a “Moskaliovka – Park (Gorodskiy, Kommunalny, Nikolaevsky)” line. Service on the Moskalievka line ceased in 1918, and rail transport along Sumskaya Street has never been revived since. Source: ngeorgij.livejournal.com
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