An admirer of everything German, Peter the Great originally named the city, Sankt-Peterburg. On 1 September 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, the Imperial government renamed the city Petrograd, meaning “Peter’s city”, in order to expunge the German name Sankt and Burg. On 26 January 1924 it was renamed to Leningrad, meaning “Lenin’s City”. On 6 September 1991, the original name, Sankt-Peterburg, was returned.
Everyday life of Leningrad in the mid-1970s
Today, in English the city is known as “Saint Petersburg”. Local residents often refer to the city by its shortened nickname, Piter.
These fascinating snapshots were taken by Michael Neubert that documented everyday life of Leningrad in the mid-1970s.
“My father was the Consul General in Leningrad from the summer of 1974 through the summer of 1977. I visited the Soviet Union for the first time in December 1974. I then spend the summer of 1975 in Leningrad and returned again in December 1975 for about a month. I spent a full year in Leningrad from the summer of 1976 through June of 1977.”
Behind the Peter and Paul Fortress, Leningrad, 1976
Consul General’s Residence, Leningrad, circa 1976
Dom Knigi on Nevsky Prospekt, Leningrad, 1976
First day of school, Grodnenskii pereulok, down the street from the Residence, Leningrad, 1976
First day of school, Grodnenskii pereulok, down the street from the Residence, Leningrad, 1976
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