Kotovsk History musem was established in 1977 and was housed in a small building in Kotovsky Street. In 1980 the museum got an honorary title “People’s Museum”. 

In 1981 the museum was moved into the building of “Fuhrstaadt”. The building of fuhrstaadt (“military image” in German) was constructed in 1917 for the needs of Tambov powder factory. It was a stone two-story building in classic eclectic style. The building was announced as a monument of history and culture of local importance.

In 1996 the museum acquired a new status and name of Museum Historical Educational Complex. Today the museum complex includes more than 6 000 exhibits of the main collection and more than 3 000 pieces of the scientific subsidiary fund. These are rich by its variety and content collections that include almost all possible historical sources: documents, photographs, rare books, paintings, graphic art, sculpture, objects of decorative and applied arts, numismatics, ethnography, and history of technology. The exposition of the museum complex embraces the history of Kotovsk starting from 1914 up to the present.

The objects of everyday life and handicraft are the central exhibits of the museum. The main part of the exposition provides interactive activities. The program “Handmade Traditional Costume” offers interactive excursions narrating about the history of Tambov region settlement, traditional costume of Tambov province. Visitors are welcomed to take a closer look at the elements of Tambov peasants’ clothes created by the laws of wisdom and beauty. There is also a wonderful opportunity to learn making traditional belts using various methods of plaiting.

New exhibitions are availible monthly: art, history, documentary and scientific ones.