Krivtsov, Vasily Vasilievich

Born around 1815 in a peasant family from the Vyaznikovsky district of Vladimir province . Natives of these places often associated their lives with trade and were known for it. Some of the Vyaznikovs were peddlers . Having gradually grown rich, many of them redeemed themselves from serfdom .

Krivtsov received only home education. In his youth, he was engaged in petty trade, not standing out from his social environment. Then he worked as an employee (clerk) at the Yekaterinburg merchant M.V. Savelyev. Having saved money and gained the necessary experience, Vasily began his own business.

Since 1851 - a merchant of the third guild. Traded in haberdashery and manufactory goods. This choice was typical of the former Vyaznikovites. He mined gold and owned mines. However, the merchant failed to become one of the largest and richest gold producers in Siberia, but nevertheless this business consistently brought him profit. Krivtsov constantly participated in the famous Irbit Fair , in 1870-1871 was a member of the fair committee.

In Yekaterinburg, having earned credibility among Ural entrepreneurs, V.V. Krivtsov was elected a merchant headman, and in 1863-1866 he was a candidate (that is, deputy) burgomaster ^[1] .

In the period from January 1, 1866 to June 20, 1869, Vasily Vasilievich corrected the post of burgomaster of Yekaterinburg, having been elected to this post, having already lost, however, its former significance. Therefore, Krivtsov-burgomaster failed to carry out any significant transformations. He was a constant vowel of the City Duma and repeatedly became a member of various Duma commissions. In 1876, he was elected a member of the commission for the compilation of a new tax on the court (rental) fee of city retail premises, and in 1878 he became a member of the commission for checking the report of the city council.

Finally, in 1869–1872 and in 1880–1884 he was in the position of mayor. The first term was easier for him, but the second was largely poisoned by criticism from the opposition, whose representatives voted against his appointment as their head, because they were unhappy with the low level of education of Krivtsov. They failed to prevent the election, but the opposition regularly blocked the initiatives of the mayor, leaving him in the minority during the Duma debate. This made it difficult and slowed down to solve urban problems, which included bridge and water supply . In parallel, Vasily Vasilievich served as a member of the board of trustees of the Alexander Almshouse (in 1869–1872 and then in 1878–1884), director of the prison department and public bank (from 1875 to 1877), member of the accounting committee of the Yekaterinburg office of the State Bank (from 1873) and the public district Zemstvos (in 1870-1879).

In 1884 Krivtsov left the post of mayor and lived as a private man, avoiding commercial and public activities. February 23, 1885 the merchant died. On February 25, he was buried in the Cathedral of the Epiphany Cathedral and buried in the cemetery of the Novo-Tikhvin Monastery. The former peasant left to the heirs, according to contemporaries, about 180 thousand rubles - a very large sum by the standards of the 80s of the XIX century.

Krivtsov did a lot of charity work . He was an honorary member of the mountain guardianship of the orphanage M. A. Nurov and regularly donated substantial sums to the shelter, was a long-term church headman of the Epiphany Cathedral, participating in its maintenance and updating. Vasily Vasilievich became an honorary guardian of the Yekaterinburg spiritual male school, which he helped earlier. The merchant owed his election to the last position his impeccable reputation, trustworthiness and the already spread glory of the benefactor. As a result, he was able to streamline the economic affairs of the entrusted school. Vasily Vasilievich donated money to male and female gymnasiums, and also donated land for the construction of the church at the children's shelter of the charity and contributed capital to the maintenance of its clergy ^[2] . Krivtsov facilitated the opening of almshouses and hospitals in the city, and was a member of the prison care committee. He also contributed to the construction of a bridge across the city pond to the station , for which they called the bridge Krivtsovsky. For a long time he was known by this name, although Vasily Vasilievich was only one of those who donated money for his construction.

For patronage and merits of the spiritual department, the merchant Krivtsov was granted several gold necklace medals “For diligence” on orders ribbons - first Anninsky, then Vladimir and then Andreev.

• Krivtsov Vasily Vasilievich. Encyclopedia of the Russian Merchants