From Zamozhorskaya to the Airport: 11 Wooden Houses of Moscow

Encountering a wooden building in today's megacity is like witnessing a miracle: a fragment of the past among urban hustle evokes nostalgia.

Pogodin Cottage in Khamovniki

Where: Moscow, Khamovniki, Pogodinskaya Street, 12A
Architect: N. V. Nikitin
Architectural Style: pseudo-Russian style
Year: 1856

Built for historian and collector M. P. Pogodin, nearly destroyed during the Great Patriotic War and yet still standing near Devichye Pole. Today it houses an office of a construction company.

Address: Moscow, Khamovniki, Pogodinskaya Street, 12A

Ostrovsky Cottage in Zamozhorskaya

Where: Moscow, Malaya Ordynka Street, 9
Year: early 19th century

The writer lived there for the first three years of his life, and today the building houses a museum dedicated to his works.

Address: Moscow, Malaya Ordynka Street, 9

Cottage in Terekhovo

Where: Moscow, Terekhovo Settlement, 81, Building 1
Year: 1928

This little hut is only ten kilometers from the Kremlin. In the turbulent 1990s, many builders hunted for the Terekhovo settlement, an oasis of village life near TTk, planning to build a recreational park there. But to this day, only wooden cottages with views of the City remain standing.

Unfortunately, the city authorities have decided to demolish the village.

Address: Terekhovo Settlement, 81, Building 1

House on Maslovka

Where: Moscow, Verkhnyaya Maslovka Street, 18
Year: 1906

Beneath this wooden house lies a tragic love story. It was built by N. P. Mayutin for his beloved. But she left the successful cattleman for a horseman who worked at his estate and moved away from Moscow.

Address: Verkhnyaya Maslovka Street, 18

Wing in the Graftevka Estate

Where: Moscow, Klinskaya Street, 2
Architect: Georgy Kaysar
Year: 1900

The only one among the entire estate complex that does not have the status of architectural heritage, which is quite odd, as this wing was built earlier than the rest of the ensemble.

Address: Klinskaya Street, 2

Station Building of Podmoskovnaya

Where: Moscow, 2nd Ambulatory Boulevard, 8A
Architect: Julius Didelis
Year: 1901

Between 2014 and 2015, the station building was recognized as a monument of architectural heritage and restored, except for the station itself. It is among the ten most neglected historical buildings in Moscow.

Address: 2nd Ambulatory Boulevard, 8A

Usoltsev Clinic

Where: Moscow, March 8th Street, 1
Architect: Mikhail Vrubel
Year: 1903

In some parts, the clinic still retains its wooden fence designed by Vrubel, who himself was once a patient in this psychiatric hospital. According to the founder Usoltsev’s vision, patients were welcomed as if into a normal home, guests of the family.

Address: March 8th Street, 1

Residential House with Artist's Studio

Where: Moscow, Chernyshevsky Lane, 6, Building 1
Architect: N. D. Morozov
Year: 1893

A charming cottage of the late 19th century is now on sale. Little is known about its past, though there is a Soviet-era photo with the sign reading 'Repair and Construction Works'.

Address: Chernyshevsky Lane, 6, Building 1

Tolstoy House

Where: Moscow, Khamovniki, Leo Tolstoy Street, 21, Building 1
Year: 1800–1805

The building now houses a museum of the writer, and it is one of the few that survived the fire of 1812. For nearly nine years, Leo Nikolayevich lived there himself, later moving to Yasnaya Polyana, and the house was occupied by the family of his youngest son.

Address: Leo Tolstoy Street, 21, Building 1

Peasant House of the Petrov Family

Where: Moscow, Shchipok Street, 3, Building 1
Year: 1861

The history of this cottage in Zamozhorskaya is cloudy, but its future is bright. It will not only be preserved but also connected to a wooden inn.

Address: Shchipok Street, 3, Building 1

House in the Cooperative Settlement on Timiriazhevskaya Street

Where: Moscow, Timiriazhevskaya Street, 33, Building 11
Architect: Karl Gippius
Architectural Style: American style
Year: 1927–1928

The house was built in a rare style and is located within the recognized cultural heritage object 'Settlement of Scientific Workers "Solomennaya Storozhka"', where nearly all houses are wooden.

Address: Timiriazhevskaya Street, 33, Building 11