Houses on Klyuchevaya Street

Houses on the western side of Klyuchevaya, below Gryaznovskaya In 1882, a large group of Dungan refugees from China arrived in Pishpek. They were accepted into Russian citizenship and settled compactly on the western outskirts of the city of Pishkek, forming the so-called Dungan settlement. Houses built from readily available materials rose within the boundaries of Kazarmennaya, Iskakovskaya, Atbashinskaya and Tashkentskaya. Dungan estates were located here freely, as was always done in Dungan settlements, and all undeveloped space was occupied by fields and vegetable gardens. The Dungans were engaged in arable farming, vegetable gardening and horticulture, maintained taverns, mills, rice mills and butter churns, produced starch and vinegar, and were engaged in carriage and trade. The local population learned from them to carefully cultivate the land and lovingly care for the crops. The culture of agriculture, the layout of plantations, the creation of an irrigation system, the ability to use watering - all this was transferred from the Dungan fields to the lands of the Kyrgyz and Russians. Dungan houses were built with windows facing closed courtyards, tightly fenced with high clay fences. They built their dwellings with raw brick or clay on a wooden frame. Reeds were used for the roof. But the city expanded and the rectilinear layout affected the chaotically built-up Dunganovka. Many residents could not withstand the onslaught of “urbanization”, sold their plots and moved to the countryside. Others became merchants and industrialists and built planned houses even in the central part of the city. Their homes were rebuilt, windows were cut into the street. But in general, the houses retained their original appearance.