Krasnomaysky, Tver Oblast

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Krasnomaysky (Russian: Красномайский) is an urban-type settlement in Vyshnevolotsky District, Tver Oblast, Russia. It sits on the bank of the Vyshny Volochyok Reservoir at the mouth of the Shlina River. The population was about 5,000 in 2010 and about 4,400 in 2021.

History
In the 15th century the area was a village named Klyuchino, near a portage to the Tvertsa River, a major medieval trade route. In 1858–59 merchant Samarin built a chemical plant, and the settlement grew to serve it. The plant was sold to merchant Andrey Bolotin, who turned it into a glass factory. The factory opened in 1873 and became the first in Russia to produce colored glass in a wide range of colors. The settlement was then part of Vyshnevolotsky Uyezd, Tver Governorate.

The factory was nationalized in 1920 and renamed Krasny May (Red May) in 1923. In 1929 the old administrative divisions were abolished. Vyshnevolotsky District was created within Tver Oblast, and Krasnomaysky joined it. In 1935 Kalinin Oblast was established, and Vyshnevolotsky District moved there. In 1990 Kalinin Oblast was renamed Tver Oblast.

Economy and sights
The main industrial site is the glass factory, founded in 1859. It stopped in 2001 and was restructured in 2002. The settlement has a glass museum at the factory, showing historical and modern glass. There is also a local historical monument: a collective grave of WWII soldiers.

Transport
Krasnomaysky is near Leontyevo railway station on the Moscow–St. Petersburg line; Leontyevo has regular trains to Bologoye and Tver. The M10 highway (Moscow–St. Petersburg) runs along the northern edge of the settlement, and a road to Firovo heads west.