After the liberation of Stalingrad there remained no intact building in the city, however, the restoration began almost immediately. And only Gergardt`s Mill was left unchanged, as a remembrance of that battle, and it was there that the State Museum of the Battle of Stalingrad was created. Every guest of the city should visit this museum.
The museum, with the panorama of the battle and street exhibits, is very big, but the first thing to see is the ruins of Gergardt`s Mill. The Mill, which is close to the Volga embankment, and Pavlov`s House located 500 meters away, became the most important centers of Stalingrad defense. Of greater strategic value was only Mamayev Kurgan.
By the Mill you can see how all the other buildings of Stalingrad looked: each square meter of walls is riddled with shells and bullets, roof is broken through by direct hits of numerous air demolition bombs. In front of the Mill is the replica of the famous Barmaley Fountain with children dancing around the Crocodile, and the fountain was left in a half ruined condition, as on the photo of the war time.
There are eight exposition halls at the museum properly. The first halls house the maps of all stages of the Battle of Stalingrad, as well as the models of the Russian military equipment, such as: mortars, guns and the searchlights used to find the enemy planes.
Outside the museum you can see some pieces of heavy equipment: tanks, guns, and a plane. Also, it will be very interesting to look at the war-time steam-engine and carriages used to transport the troops. From the high embankment you can have a beautiful view of the Volga.
