 The city officially took the name of Joseph Stalin on April 4, 1952; its name was "Sztálinváros" 'Stalin City' as a parallel to Stalingrad in the USSR.The metal works were opened in 1954.The city had a population of 27,772 at this time; 85% of them lived in nice, comfortable apartments, while about 4,200 people still lived in uncomfortable barracks which originally provided "homes" for the construction workers.