The Construction of Kazakhstan Magnitka and the city of Temirtau
On December 3, 1957, the ceremonial laying of the foundation of the first blast furnace of the metallurgical plant took place.
In April 1958, the XIII Congress of the Komsomol declared Kazakhstan Magnitka the All-Union Komsomol priority construction site of the country. Thousands of boys and girls came to Komsomol committees to get a ticket to a new building in Kazakhstan. Before the entrance to Temirtau there was an arch with the words: “The Kazakhstan Magnitka is being built here – the priority Komsomol construction of the country.”
In 1958-1959, the Central Committee of the Komsomol sent 26 thousand volunteers to the construction of the Kazakhstan Magnitka. In 1958 alone, 6,029 volunteers arrived at the Kazmetallurgstroy trust following a public call. To build the plant, it was necessary to process 23 million cubic meters of soil, lay 2.5 million cubic meters of concrete, install 210 thousand tons of metal structures, and 314 thousand tons of technological equipment.
Together with the Kazakhstan Magnitka, the city of Temirtau was built and developed. New streets and avenues appeared on the map of Temirtau: Karaganda Highway, Lenin, Mira, Stroiteley, Komsomolsky avenues, Dimitrova, Michurin, Kalinin streets. Along with massive housing construction, many capital public buildings were built in the eastern region of the city, among which the management of the Kazmetallurgstroy trust, the Vostok cinema, the Builders’ House of Culture, a five-story hospital building, and the Komsomolets cinema stand out.
Temirtau in the 60s was a large construction site, the city became one of the cultural centers of the republic. At the disposal of the city’s workers are the Metallurgists’ Palace, the Builders’ House of Culture, the wide-screen cinemas “Komsomolets” and “Vostok”, and the House of Books. Thanks to the efforts of young residents of Temirtau, a park has been laid out behind the new Vostok cinema. The sports base is also developing. Thousands of sports and physical education enthusiasts participate in volleyball, basketball, skiing, freestyle wrestling, and rowing sections.
Kazakhstan Magnitka has become a launching cite of professional honor and glory for many young people. Not only because they built a plant and a city and smelted metal. This is a generation of people with steely characters, with unbending will and determination. These were the qualities that allowed them to solve any problems and conquer the most difficult peaks despite difficulties.