Kropyvnytskyi Penal Colony (No. 6)

The state institution “Kropyvnytskyi Penal Colony (No. 6)” is one of the oldest penal institutions in Ukraine, the history of which is inextricably linked to the history of the city of Kropyvnytskyi (formerly Yelysavethrad) and the development of the state's penitentiary system.

The history of detention sites on the territory of modern-day Kropyvnytskyi dates back to the mid-18th century. Simultaneously with the construction of the Saint Elizabeth Fortress, founded on 18 June 1754, the first premises for holding arrested persons were created. Subsequently, with the growth of the city of Yelysavethrad, the network of prison institutions expanded. During various historical periods, a transit prison, a political prison, a detention house, and other places of confinement operated within the city.

At the beginning of the 20th century, in 1905, a prison complex was built in the area of the Saint Elizabeth Fortress, which became the basis for the modern penitentiary institution. It was this building that was subsequently used as a prison and later became the base for the creation of a penal colony.

During the Second World War, the institution's operations were interrupted. In July–August 1941, convicts and persons under investigation were evacuated to Kazakhstan. After the liberation of the Kirovohrad region, the institution was restored and gradually rebuilt.

The modern history of the colony began on 23 May 1961, when, by order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, an industrial-labour colony of high-security level with a capacity of 700 persons was created based on part of the premises of the prison of the Kirovohrad Region Internal Affairs Administration. At the same time, the institution's staff and units for supervision and security were formed.

In the 1960s and 1970s, the colony's production base was actively developed. In 1964, production reached full capacity. In 1972, the residential zone was expanded, and in 1975, the production workshops were reconstructed and an administrative headquarters was built. At the end of the 1970s, local sections and isolated production facilities were created in the residential and production zones, which improved the organisation of the regime and the labour activities of the convicts.

For many years, the institution's enterprise specialised in the production of agricultural machinery and components. The primary products were automotive grain loaders, fertilizer spreaders for seed drills, water-ballast rollers, and other items in the machine-building industry. Subsequently, production was modernised; a repair and mechanical workshop and a machining and assembly workshop were created. At the end of the 1980s, the Kirovohrad Penal Colony was the first among the institutions of the Ukrainian criminal-executive system to set up the production of filter elements.

An important place in the institution's activities has always been occupied by the education and vocational training of convicts. In 1965, a secondary school was opened on the grounds of the colony, and in 1969, a vocational school was established, where convicts acquired the professions of electric welder, electrician, turner, milling machine operator, and fitter. In 2004, the Kropyvnytskyi Training Centre was created for the vocational training of convicts.

After the reform of the criminal-executive system of Ukraine, the institution received its modern name — Kropyvnytskyi Penal Colony (No. 6). Today, it functions as a medium-security institution for men sentenced to imprisonment and remains one of the key institutions of the penitentiary system in the Kirovohrad Region.

Over the years, the institution has been headed by I. D. Korsun, B. M. Cheprasov, M. P. Maleta, M. P. Honzur, V. O. Ryba, A. A. Dombrovskyi, Ya. M. Krykhovetskyi, O. L. Milenin, A. A. Nazarenko, A. F. Krysenko, Yu. I. Yermolenko, and other leaders.

Currently, the head of the institution is Serhii Oleksandrovych KHRAMENKOV.

Contact Information

State Institution “Kropyvnytskyi Penal Colony (No. 6)”

25006, Kirovohrad Region, Kropyvnytskyi, Yanovskoho Street, 50

Telephone: (0522) 33-70-90

E-mail: [email protected]

Head of the institution: Serhii Oleksandrovych KHRAMENKOV.