The house-museum of the Stoletov family is located in the city of
Vladimir. As you know, Stoletov Alexander Grigoryevich is an
outstanding professor of physics and a Russian scientist who at one
time worked at Moscow University and was born in Vladimir. In the
spring of May 28, 1976, the opening of the memorial museum took
place, which coincided with an important event that took place
during the "Stoletov Readings", namely the Second Stoletov
Scientific Conference, in which the leading minds of Russia took
part.
The museum is a small wooden outbuilding where the
Stoletov family used to live. The wing was built in the middle of
the 19th century and stands not far from the impressive two-story
house of the Stoletov merchants. The miniature wooden house is
typical of the 19th century and is located in the central part of
the city.
The living room in the house was almost completely
restored, in which a huge number of authentic items that were used by
the Stoletov family have been preserved to this day. On the wall you can
see a portrait of Grigory Mikhailovich (father), decorated in an oval
wooden frame, who was a wealthy merchant. Here are photos of all members
of the family, as well as their relatives. The room has a wall clock, a
piano, paintings, a chandelier and furniture that transport you to the
living environment of a famous family.
In the adjacent room there
is an old bookcase belonging to Alexander Grigoryevich, on the shelves
of which there are books with his autographs and some notes of his
family members. Of particular value is the volume of the Russian edition
of Charles Darwin's book entitled The Descent of Man. This book belonged
to Stoletov's older brother, Vasily, who during his life continued his
father's work in order to give his three younger brothers, Nikolai,
Alexander and Dmitry, a higher university education. Next to the closet
is a small table, the drawer of which is full of letters.
Two
spacious halls are completely devoted to the work of Alexander
Grigoryevich Stoletov, who, in addition to all his scientific merits,
became the founder and head of a large school of Russian physicists.
As for the merits of the great Russian physicist, it is worth noting
that he was able to establish the most important laws of the
photoelectric effect, as well as develop a plan for the experimental
study of mining electrical phenomena using a galvanometer. This method
subsequently helped to discover important phenomena of radioactivity and
found successful application in modern science. In addition, Stoletov
became the first creator of a photoelectric cell used in sound films,
television, automation, as well as in the basics of solar panels on
spacecraft.
The museum collection includes personal belongings of
Alexander Grigorievich, including letters from Timiryazev K.A.,
Tsiolkovsky K.E., Helm-Goltz G., Kovalevsky S.V., Kundt A. and many
others. In his collection there are many diplomas and awards given to
him for services to domestic science.
In one of the museum halls,
you can see the devices created by the scientist, on which his talented
students practiced. Nikolai Grigorievich Stoletov - brother of Alexander
Grigorievich - geographer, as well as a military leader, who began his
career as an ordinary soldier in the Crimean War. Later, he went down in
history as one of the prominent participants in the liberation of
Bulgaria from the Turkish invasion.
Nikolai Grigorievich was a
research scientist and led an expedition in 1874, which was devoted to a
detailed study of the vast Amu Darya region. During the expedition,
hydrographic studies were carried out, as well as the study of
ethnography, history and climate. The outstanding geographer was awarded
the medal of the Russian Geographical Society.
The largest number
of materials in the museum were sent from the People's Republic of
Bulgaria. It is known that in Bulgaria there is a street named after a
famous scientist.
In the city of Vladimir there is a school where
the Stoletov brothers were trained, which received the same name.