Dimitrovgrad is a Russian town in the Ulyanovsk Region. It is located in Zavolzhye, at the inflow of River Bolshoi Cheremshan into the Cheremshan Gulf of the Kuibyshev water reservoir, 90 km to the east of Ulyanovsk. It is a railway station and a multiple road junction.

It is famous for the beaver wildlife area located in the Melekes District on the Cheremsha River.

The town takes the overall area of 104sq.km and has the population of 118 513 people (as of 2014).

History of Dimitrovgrad

It was founded as the Melekes Plant Village at the state distillery in the first half of the 18th century. It was Melekes Settlement of the Stavropol District of the Samara Province From 1877.

In 1919 it became the town of Melekes, named after the Melekes River (translated as "still water" from Iranian).

The town of Melekes was part of the Middle Volga area from 1928, of the Kuibyshev Region from 1936, and of the Ulyanovsk Region from 1943.

In 1972 it was renamed into Dimitrovgrad in honor of the figure of Comintern and Bulgarian communist party G. M. Dimitrov s (1882-1949).

Architecture and Sights

In the region – remaining constructions of the Zakamsky defensive line (1652-56) can be seen in the Dimitrovgrad District.