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The laying of the railway caused the rapid development of the city. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were several industrial enterprises in the city territory. During the Great Patriotic War, Chelyabinsk gained its first unofficial name, Tankograd. Military equipment and ammunition were manufactured here. The contribution of the city to the Soviet army’s victory is invaluable. Today, outstanding architectural monuments and museums that house precious exhibits reminding of important events in the city history.
Travelers can diversify their recreation by studying the historical heritage and visiting modern entertainment centers. If the weather is good, you can walk along the most beautiful city streets and parks. In total, there are 23 large parks in the city. In summer, some of them turn into big outdoor entertainment complexes. From year to year, the modern flourishing city is becoming more attractive for tourists.
![Miass River Miass River](http://www.orangesmile.com/common/img_cities_w300/chelyabinsk--2896749-15.jpg)
The oldest culture center in Chelyabinsk is the South Urals History Museum. It was opened in 1932. Now, the museum exposure includes over 250 000 exhibits, some of which are unique archaeological, historical, and ethnographic artifacts. One of the museum halls presents the natural-science collection. The other one stores pieces of applied art. The museum was “transferred” to its present building in 2006. It is distinguished by modern technical facilities.
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In Chelyabinsk, there is a small oceanarium that will impress all the nature admirers. It welcomed the first guests in 1983. In 2014, the complete reconstruction of the oceanarium was finished. Now, its visitors can see rare fish and turtles. There is also an interesting terrarium and a special section with insects. This oceanarium is also special because it is the only venue of this type on the territory of the Chelyabinsk region. There is also a wonderful zoo in the city. It opened its doors for visitors in 1996. Today, you can see here over a hundred species of animals, most of them are very rare and listed in the Red Book.