“A lady’s happiness”

The house opposite the Dormition Cathedral, according to the list of architectural monuments in Kharkiv, was built by the architect Stepan Chernyshev in 1824 (according to one version, Chernyshevskaya Street is named after him). The Tambovtsev merchant family commissioned the construction.

Photo: Ivan Ponomarenko, 2016

At the beginning of the 20th century, the building, located on Kvitky-Osnov’yanenka St, 11, housed the haberdashery store “Ladies’ Happiness,” which was constantly advertised in pre-1917 Kharkiv periodicals.

Photo: Ivan Ponomarenko, 2016

The chain of stores belonged to merchant Fyodor Enurovsky, who, in turn, owned a luxurious building at Kontorska Street, 5.

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Fyodor Enurovsky

Shopgirls at the “Ladies’ Happiness” spoke Italian, German, English and French.

Photo: Ivan Ponomarenko, 2016

The advertisement particularly emphasized: “Ladies ask that you do not smoke tobacco and do not bring dogs,” i.e. the client is, of course, always right, but he must respect the shopgirls.

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Surprisingly, until 2011-2012, the building also housed a shop called “Ladies’ Happiness,” continuing the continuity of generations.

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Google Street View 2011

The street is named after the writer and playwright Grigory Kvitka (1778-1843). Kvitka made enormous efforts to develop the Kharkiv Theater and the Institute for Noble Maidens (both founded in 1812).

The building was damaged by a Russian missile strike on March 2, 2022.

On April 22, 2024, the building was damaged by fire.