Construction and Improvement of the "New" Osh

Construction of the "new" city

The location for the construction of the "new" city, which occupied an area of 95 desyatins, was chosen by the imperial authorities a bit south of the "old" Osh, upstream along the Ak-Buura River. In its layout, the new city part, where the streets were laid out in a checkerboard pattern and intersected at right angles, favorably distinguished itself from "native" Osh and other ancient Central Asian cities and settlements with their many narrow winding streets and dead ends, with dense residential buildings. A park was established around the Orthodox church, and directly across the street from it was a park that stretched almost to the river itself, the banks of which were connected by a bridge. The road led directly to the large stone house of the district chief. In 1898, this house stood on an elevation half a verst from the main construction in the new part of Osh. This part of the city housed a postal station where travelers stopped (the city did not have hotels for a long time), a post and telegraph office, a treasury, an officers' assembly, a hospital, a parish school, a Russian-native school, and, of course, barracks.

In response to the constant complaints of the townspeople and in anticipation of the occasionally visiting new authorities from the region in the early 20th century, the district administration hastily carried out some external improvements. This was done primarily to ensure that travel and passage through the streets of Osh "would be convenient at any time of the year." Thus, between 1907 and 1908, a concrete bridge was built over the Ak-Buura River. The only gazebo was constructed in the city garden. The builders filled two streets in the center with gravel and laid sidewalks in some places. In 1906, the length of paved streets amounted to 1/30 of the total length of streets. That same year, the first long-awaited slaughterhouse with a facility for washing intestines was also built.

Such luxury, alas, did not touch the local penitentiary institutions. The police station and prison in Osh were located in state-owned buildings that, even according to official documents, left "much to be desired." The prison, an old dilapidated building, as well as the detention center, was constantly overcrowded from 1908 to 1914, and the detainees were kept in the most terrible conditions.

And now - about the benefits of European civilization. At the end of the 19th century, there was only one lantern throughout Osh. But within a decade, clear progress was evident: 63 lanterns appeared, including 8 kerosene lamps. On average, there was 1.5-2 versts of streets for each such unit of the lighting system. In 1903, there were 11 cab drivers in the city.

The fare was 15 kopecks to the end of the so-called "new" (built by the Russians) city, 40 kopecks to the end of the "old," and the same amount for an hour's ride. Such a significant difference in payment was explained not so much by the different lengths of the "ends," but by the very complicated conditions of movement in the Asian part of the city with its intricate maze of narrow winding alleys and dead ends. Moreover, they were teeming with crowds of people in the areas adjacent to trading points, especially on Fridays and market days.

Here is how the Muslim newspaper "Vakt" informed its readers in 1913 about the local communication system: "In Osh, there is a postal and telegraph point. Mail is transported from Andijan by horse. Passengers from Andijan travel by carriage... by horse and in postal diligences. Three to four years ago, an automobile route began."

However, progress did not extend to the development of the backward, dwarf municipal economy, which was almost not funded from the city budget. It is not surprising that in the questionnaire of the Central Statistical Committee, which collected information about the cities of the Fergana region, the Osh district chief answered negatively to many points: "There is no water supply in the city," "there is no sewage," "there are no fire brigades," and so on, in the same spirit...

Here we note that water supply always plays an important role in the life of a city, especially in Asia. But even at the beginning of the 20th century, the water supply of Osh for domestic, agricultural, and industrial needs of the townspeople was still based on the ancient irrigation system of water use from the Ak-Buura River. This was accompanied by many troubles. In particular, local residents often experienced acute water shortages in the summer, especially in dry years and in areas far from the river and irrigation channels. As one moved away from the main water artery, the pollution of the water increased.

Therefore, with the growth of the population, the problem of unsanitary conditions increased. As reported by the district chief, waste was partly taken to the fields, partly disinfected (in some public places and courtyards of "intelligent" homeowners in the new part of the city) and buried in pits "without harm to the yards (!) due to the deep occurrence of groundwater." It is clear that as a result of such "care" from the authorities, the overall sanitary condition of the city not only remained extremely unsatisfactory but also noticeably worsened with the growth of Osh and its population.

Osh at the beginning of the 20th century