of Western Oblast. On August 1, 1930 the okrugs were abolished, and the districts were subordinated directly to the oblast. On 29 January 1935 Kalinin Oblast was established, and Staritsky District was transferred to Kalinin Oblast. During World War II, between 12 October 1941 and 1 January 1942, the town was occupied by the German army. In 1990, Kalinin Oblast was renamed Tver Oblast. Administrative and municipal status Within the framework of administrative divisions, Staritsa serves as the administrative center of Staritsky District. As an administrative division, it is incorporated within Staritsky District as Staritsa Urban Settlement. As a municipal division, this administrative unit also has urban settlement status and is a part of Staritsky Municipal District. Economy Industry Main industries in Staritsa are a clothes factory, a flax-manufacturing factory, as well as mechanical and vegetable food factories. Transportation A railway connecting Torzhok and Rzhev has the Staritsa railway station, located about a dozen kilometers northeast of the town of Staritsa. A paved road connecting Tver to Rzhev crosses the district and passes through Staritsa, where there is a bridge over the Volga. Another road connects Staritsa with Torzhok via Bernovo. There are also local roads with bus traffic originating from Staritsa. The Volga is navigable but there is no passenger navigation. Architecture The town is split by the river into two parts: the larger left and the smaller right. There are numerous old abandoned limestone quarries in the town's vicinity, explaining an abundance of old limestone buildings in the town. In the right part of a town a site of an old settlement can be clearly traced, with huge mounds and ground walls. On the opposing left bank of the river stands the Assumption Abbey, with a limestone cathedral from 1530 and a tented refectory from 1570. There are also several churches from the 18th and 19th centuries. The cathedral of Sts. Boris and Gleb is a ponderous Neoclassical edifice erected from 1805 to 1820. It replaced a many-tented cathedral built in the 1560s by the same masters as worked on the famous St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow. It was said that Moscow and Staritsa cathedrals were two sisters, just like the rulers of two towns, Ivan and Vladimir, were two brothers. Staritsa contains 37 cultural heritage monuments of federal significance and additionally 121 objects classified as cultural and historical heritage of local significance. The federal monuments include, in