According to official data, in 1871, an independent Turkestan diocese was established, and a felt field church was relocated from the village of Teploklyuchenka to the new district town of Karakol. In 1876, a brick building was erected on its site, which, unfortunately, was destroyed by an earthquake in 1887. In 1895, local merchants Maslikovs built a new five-domed church with a wooden bell tower based on an individual design. This church became an important cultural center, housing a library with over 1,000 books. In the 1930s, the church was closed, and the building was handed over to a children's sports school after some renovations. During the Great Patriotic War, the church was returned to the faithful, but from the early 60s until 1982, it was again used as a sports school. In the late 1980s, restoration work began on the church, and in 1991 it was returned to the Orthodox community.
“This church has become one of the main attractions of Karakol and attracts many tourists. The history of the temple dates back to the founding of the city itself, carried out by the far-sighted traveler Alexander Kaulbars. He was the initiator of the construction of a temporary felt church, which was used to build most of the structures of that time. However, just a year later, the felt walls were replaced with wooden ones, and later — with stone and brick. The building did not withstand the earthquakes and fires of 1887 and 1889 and was almost completely destroyed.
The new church with five domes and a bell tower was built by local merchants Maslikovs, consecrated in 1895, and was designed in the shape of a cross, with a small but harmonious structure topped with domes and a bell tower. The snow-white walls with carved blue inlays and frescoes depicting flowers and berries created an atmosphere of purity, while the iconostasis and modest decor gave a sense of a spiritual home.
The church was designed by architects and engineers from Verny (now Almaty),” the report states.
