Kholmsk

Kholmsk (English) Холмск (Russian)
-  Town  -
250px Kholmsk Commercial Port
Location of Sakhalin Oblast in Russia
Kholmsk Location of Kholmsk in Sakhalin Oblast
Coordinates:
70px	70px
Coat of arms	Flag
Town Day	August 18
Administrative status (as of December 2011)
Country	Russia
Federal subject	Sakhalin Oblast
Administrative district	Kholmsky District
Administrative center of	Kholmsky District
Municipal status (as of July 2012)
Urban okrug	Kholmsky Urban Okrug
Administrative center of	Kholmsky Urban Okrug
Statistics
Population (2010 Census)	30,937 inhabitants
Time zone	VLAT (UTC+10:00)
Founded	1870
Previous names	Maoka (until 1946)
Postal code(s)	694620
Dialing code(s)	+7 424 33
Official website
Kholmsk on Wikimedia Commons

Kholmsk (Russian: Холмск), known until 1946 as Maoka (Japanese: 真岡), is a port town and the administrative center of Kholmsky District of Sakhalin Oblast, Russia. It is located on the southwest coast of the Sakhalin Island, on coast of the gulf of Nevelsky in the Strait of Tartary of the Sea of Japan, 83 kilometers (52 mi) west of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk. Population: 30,937 (2010 Census); 35,141 (2002 Census); 51,381 (1989 Census).

History

It was founded in 1870 as a military post. After the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, it was transferred to Japanese control, along with the rest of southern Sakhalin, under the Treaty of Portsmouth. The Japanese renamed it Maoka (真岡), translating roughly as True Hill.

On August 20, 1945, a combined marine battalion and the 113th infantry brigade landed in Port Maoka. They were preceded by a group of scouts, landed secretively by submarine Sh-118, in the Maoka area to successfully complete their task. However, Japanese resistance was desperate, and the landing party had to fight particularly fiercely. Japanese fire set one of the coastguard vessels on fire, to which the Russian response was intense naval bombardment of the town, causing more civilian deaths. See Soviet assault on Maoka for details.

The Red Army retook the whole of Sakhalin at the end of World War II, with the town receiving its present name in 1946. The name is derived from the Russian word Kholm for hill, referring to the town's location on the hillside surrounding the harbor.

As with a number of urban areas in the Russian Far East, Kholmsk has seen a large drop in population since the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the economic crisis which followed in the 1990s.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Kholmsk serves as the administrative center of Kholmsky District and is subordinated to it. As a municipal division, the town of Kholmsk and twenty-three rural localities of Kholmsky District are incorporated as Kholmsky Urban Okrug.

Economy and transportation

Kholmsk is an important sea port for the Sakhalin Island. Since 1973, it has been the Sakhalin terminal of a SASCO train ferry to the port of Vanino on the Russian mainland, connecting the mainline rail network with that of the island.

Since Sakhalin railways use the Japanese gauge of 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in), the railcars coming from the Russian mainland have their bogies changed in Kholmsk.

It's the largest transport center on Sakhalin, which includes a non-freezing sea port with 2 terminals, 3 railway stations and a knot of highways. Kholmsk is connected with Vanino port by the Kholmsk—Vanino sea railway passenger-and-freight ferry. From the town, the federal highway R495 Kholmsk—Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk begins. Kholmsk is a large economic, industrial and cultural center of the Sakhalin Oblast, a center of sea fishery and ship repair.

International relations

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Russia

Twin towns and sister cities

Kholmsk is twinned with:

• Ansan, South Korea
• Otaru, Japan
• Kushiro, Japan (since 1975)

References

Sources

• Сахалинская областная Дума. Закон №25-ЗО от 23 марта 2011 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Сахалинской области», в ред. Закона №62-ЗО от 27 июня 2013 г. «О внесении изменения в статью 10 Закона Сахалинской области "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Сахалинской области"». Вступил в силу 9 апреля 2011 г.. Опубликован: "Губернские ведомости", №55(3742), 29 марта 2011 г. (Sakhalin Oblast Duma. Law #25-ZO of March 23, 2011 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Sakhalin Oblast, as amended by the Law #62-ZO of June 27, 2013 On Amending Article 10 of the Law of Sakhalin Oblast "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Sakhalin Oblast". Effective as of April 9, 2011.).
• Сахалинская областная Дума. Закон №524 от 21 июля 2004 г. «О границах и статусе муниципальных образований в Сахалинской области», в ред. Закона №45-ЗО от 27 мая 2013 г. «О внесении изменения в Закон Сахалинской области "О границах и статусе муниципальных образований в Сахалинской области"». Вступил в силу 1 января 2005 г. Опубликован: "Губернские ведомости", №175–176(2111–2112), 31 июля 2004 г. (Sakhalin Oblast Duma. Law #524 of July 21, 2004 On the Borders and Status of the Municipal Formations in Sakhalin Oblast, as amended by the Law #45-ZO of May 27, 2013 On Amending the Law of Sakhalin Oblast "On the Borders and Status of the Municipal Formations in Sakhalin Oblast". Effective as of January 1, 2005.).

External links

• Kholmsk travel guide from Wikivoyage