Stavropol

Stavropol Territory is located in the central Caucasian foothills and on the northern slopes of the Greater Caucasus (Mt. Dombai-Ulgen, elevation 4046 m; Mt. Elbrus, elevation 5642 m) and covers an area of 66 500 km2. It is bounded by many neighbors, including the Republic of North Ossetia, Karbarda-Balkar Republic, and Georgia in the south; Krasnodar Territory in the southwest, west, and northwest; Rostov Region in the north; the Republic of Kalmykia in the north and northeast; the Republic of Dagestan in the east; and the Chechen and Ingush republics in the southeast.

The Stavropol Territory is famous for medical mineral springs. This area houses a world famous recreational complex which is called Kavkazskie Mineralny Waters. The cities of Pyatigorsk, Zheleznovodsk, Lermontov, Essentuki, Mineralnye Vody, and other centers known for their mineral springs are located in this area. The base of Dzhinal Ridge has been turned a resort park with a variety of local tree and shrub species, guided trails, and recreation centers. 
There are huge numbers of ancient settlement sites, barrows (kurgans), and burial grounds in the valleys of the Egorlyk, Kuma, Tomuzlovka, and Tashla rivers and their tributaries; the areas of Kislovodsk Basin and Caucasian Mineral Waters are also considered special archeological sites. The Golden Horde city of Madjar, the capital of the North Caucasus in those days, was located on the site of Budennovsk.
Today, 3 theaters, 3 concert organizations, 644 clubs, 9 cultural and recreational parks, 37 museums operate in Stavropol Territory. There are 1185 cultural monuments in the region, including 115 of federal significance.
The Uspenskaya and Andreevskaya churches, a chapel in Pyatigorsk`s old cemetery, a Catholic church in Pyatigorsk, a mosque in Stavropol, and other religious buildings are protected by the government.
Griboedov, Pushkin, Lermontov, Tolstoy, Alyabiev, Balakirev (both 19th century Russian composers), and Vereshchagin (Russian artist of the late 19th century) all visited Stavropol in their time and contributed enormously to the city`s cultural development. The first Russian theater in the Caucasus was founded here in 1845. The Stavropol Botanical Gardens founded in 1959 are also of great significance. 
Kislovodsk. Abundant sunshine and greenery, medicinal water, natural and historical monuments, and high mountain peaks attract tourists and vacationers to Kislovodsk, Russia`s oldest resort. Kislovodsk Resort Park is unique and beautiful with pines, towering silvery firs, larches, and giant beeches and hornbeams. An aerial cableway operates in the park, with a marvelous view of the city and the Caucasus Mountains from its upper station. There are 70 km of walking trails leading through groves and lanes, with numerous cafes, bars, and pavilions along the way for your enjoyment. Besides the resort park, you can relax in the City Park of Culture and Rest, and if you want to swim or suntan, you can go to the old or new lakes. The regional museum, the dacha of the singer Chaliapin, the museum house of the artist Yaroshenko, and tours of the city will help acquaint you with the city and its celebrities. If you like to travel and sit by a campfire, you have a choice of horseback-riding and hiking trails in the Caucasus Mountains.
Stavropol was founded in 1777 as a military encampment and designated as a city in 1785. The city has one the biggest and best city parks in Russia. In September of 2000 a Stone Cross was erected on the Fortified Hill “Krepostnaya Gora” to commemorate the foundation of the city and in honour of the third millennium. In 2002 Stavropol marked its 225-yh anniversary. A new square with a monument of angel the Savior was built in honour of this important event.