Olyokminsk

It was founded in 1635^[1] as an ostrog by the Cossacks led by Pyotr Beketov, sited on the left bank of the Lena opposite the mouth of the Olyokma River.^{[citation needed]} The outpost was later moved a few kilometers upstream, to a location less prone to flooding in spring.

As the junction for river traffic on the Lena and Olyokma, it was the base for Russian expeditions further east and eventually became a trade center on the river route to Yakutsk. Town status was granted to it in 1783.^{[citation needed]}

Decembrists Nikolay Chizhov and Andrey Andreyev were exiled here.

During World War II, an airfield was built here for the Alaska-Siberian (ALSIB) air route used to ferry American Lend-Lease aircraft to the Eastern Front.^[11]

The town is located on the left bank of the Lena River. To the north rises the Lena Plateau and to the south, beyond the right bank of the Lena, lies the Olyokma-Chara Plateau.^[12]

Within the framework of administrative divisions, Olyokminsk serves as the administrative center of Olyokminsky District.^[1] As an inhabited locality, Olyokminsk is classified as a town under district jurisdiction.^[1] As an administrative division, it is, together with four rural localities, incorporated within Olyokminsky District as the Town of Olyokminsk.^[1] As a municipal division, the Town of Olyokminsk is incorporated within Olyokminsky Municipal District as Olyokminsk Urban Settlement.^[4]

Timber processing and a power plant are the focus of the town's economy, along with farming in the surrounding area.

Olyokminsk is served by the Olyokminsk Airport (IATA: OLZ).

The town is notable for a number of surviving pre-20th century wooden architecture, including the Alexander Nevsky Chapel (1891) and Cathedral of Our Savior (1860).

Olyokminsk has a subarctic climate (Köppen climate classification Dfc). Winters have temperatures averaging from −34.6 to −26.6 °C (−30.3 to −15.9 °F) in January, while summers have average temperatures from +12.0 to +24.9 °C (53.6 to 76.8 °F) in July. In the summer months of June, July, and August, it is not uncommon for temperatures to surpass +30 °C (86 °F) during the day. Precipitation is significantly higher in summer than at other times of the year. Although summers are similar to republic capital Yakutsk, winters are less severe courtesy of the lower latitude. As a result, Olyokminsk is rare for the Sakha Republic cities in that it has recorded above-freezing temperatures during January and February. Those episodes are rare and very short-lived.

On August 6, 1986, Olyokminsk recorded its highest ever temperature of +37.7 °C (99.9 °F).^[13] The record low for Olyokminsk was −60.1 °C (−76.2 °F) in 1907.^[14] July is the only month when temperatures never dropped below 0 °C (32 °F) and December is only month when temperatures have never reached 0 °C (32 °F).

• Official website of the Sakha Republic. Registry of the Administrative-Territorial Divisions of the Sakha Republic. Olyokminsky District. (in Russian)
• Государственное Собрание (Ил Тумэн) Республики Саха (Якутия). Закон №172-З №351-III от 30 ноября 2004 г. «Об установлении границ и о наделении статусом муниципального района муниципальных образований Республики Саха (Якутия)», в ред. Закона №1535-З №597-V от 27 ноября 2015 г. «О внесении изменений в статьи 1 и 2 Закона Республики Саха (Якутия) "Об установлении границ и о наделении статусом муниципального района муниципальных образований Республики Саха (Якутия)"». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Якутия", №245, 31 декабря 2004 г. (State Assembly (Il Tumen) of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic. Law #172-Z No. 351-III of November 30, 2004 On Establishing the Borders and on Granting the Municipal District Status to the Municipal Formations of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic, as amended by the Law #1535-Z No. 597-V of November 27, 2015 On Amending Articles 1 and 2 of the Law of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic "On Establishing the Borders and on Granting the Municipal District Status to the Municipal Formations of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic". Effective as of the day of the official publication.).
• Государственное Собрание (Ил Тумэн) Республики Саха (Якутия). Закон №173-З №353-III от 30 ноября 2004 г. «Об установлении границ и о наделении статусом городского и сельского поселений муниципальных образований Республики Саха (Якутия)», в ред. Закона №1058-З №1007-IV от 25 апреля 2012 г. «О внесении изменений в Закон Республики Саха (Якутия) "Об установлении границ и о наделении статусом городского и сельского поселений муниципальных образований Республики Саха (Якутия)"». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Якутия", №245, 31 декабря 2004 г. (State Assembly (Il Tumen) of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic. Law #173-Z No. 353-III of November 30, 2004 On Establishing the Borders and on Granting the Urban and Rural Settlement Status to the Municipal Formations of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic, as amended by the Law #1058-Z No. 1007-IV of April 25, 2012 On Amending the Law of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic "On Establishing the Borders and on Granting the Urban and Rural Settlement Status to the Municipal Formations of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic". Effective as of the day of the official publication.).