School No. 18, located at Illinska Street, 40 (Kholodna Hora neighborhood), was built in 1915 according to a design by architect Iliodor Zagoskin.

It was originally called the Alekseevskaya Municipal Comprehensive School. The architect’s style is evident—the facade really does resemble the schools at Malа Panasіvska Street, 1 and Shota Rustaveli Lane, 10.

The school also appears in Boris Silaev’s book *The Boys from Kholodna Gora*, which recounts the turbulent revolutionary events of 1917–1920.

According to information on the school’s website, the I. Franko Boys’ Gymnasium was located here starting in 1918. The building was damaged during the WWII but was restored in 1951 with the help of the Southern Railway,

In 1952, it became Secondary School No. 1 of the Southern Railway. In 1960, the school was redesignated as No. 18 and once again named after Ivan Franko. On the facade, there is a plaque commemorating alumnus Vitaly Smirnov, who KIA in Afghanistan in 1980.

A solid metal door doesn’t exactly enhance the building’s facade, but not long ago, it was white and made of plastic. Perhaps one day we’ll live to see the time when these doors in old buildings are replaced with wooden ones—or at least with doors that mimics carved patterns appropriate to the era in which the building was constructed.