TAGANROG

city and seaport, Rostov oblast (province), southwestern Russia. It lies on the northern coast of Taganrog Gulf of the Sea of Azov. Founded as a fortress and naval base in 1698 by Peter I the Great, Taganrog developed in the 19th century as a grain-exporting port. Although overshadowed by Rostov-na-Donu, it is still a significant port for the Donets Basin coalfield and industrial area. Steel, steel sheets and pipes, high-pressure boilers, and combine harvesters are made, and there are ship repair yards; leatherworking and other light industries are also carried on. Taganrog is the birthplace of the writer Anton Chekhov, and the home in which he spent his early life is preserved as a museum. The city has several institutions of higher education and the A.P. Chekhov Theatre. Pop. (1992 est.) 293,000.