The Nakhodka Bay, around which the city is organized, was first known to the Russians on the corvette Amerika, which sought shelter in the bay during a storm in 1859. In honor of this occasion, the ice-free and relatively calm bay was named Nakhodka, which in Russian means "discovery" or "lucky find".
An imperial settlement existed here from 1868 to 1872 but was abandoned following the death of its administrator, Harald Furuhjelm. In the fall of 1870, Otto Wilhelm Lindholm established a whaling station across the bay from the settlement. In the spring of 1871 he fitted out his schoonerHannah Rice and sailed to Posyet, where he caught six gray whales.[8]
Until the 20th century, the area around the bay remained uninhabited.[citation needed] When the Soviet government decided to build a harbor in the area in the 1930s, a number of small settlements were founded, which were merged as a work settlement in the 1940s. On May 18, 1950, the settlement, by then with a population of about 28,000 residents, was granted town status.[citation needed]
Nakhodka has one of the mildest climates in Primorsky Krai and in the whole of the Asian part of Russia. Average temperature in January is −9.3 °C (15.3 °F); in August (the warmest month), it is +20.6 °C (69.1 °F). It is classified as a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classificationDfb) due to the vast seasonal differences and is a very cold climate for a coastal location below 43 degrees latitude. The maritime influence is manifested in low diurnal temperature variation and a vast summer seasonal lag. Due to the influence of the interior, there is a sharp drop in temperatures between October and November. Half of the year has mean temperatures above 10 °C (50 °F), in spite of the warmest month being only moderately warm and the coldest month having quite severe cold, with a very low seasonal lag in winter.
The city's economy, based mostly around a port and port-related activity such as fish processing and canning, had suffered since 1991 as Vladivostok was opened to foreign activity again. Local industry also took a hit during the 1998 Russian financial crisis.
^Lindholm, O. V., Haes, T. A., & Tyrtoff, D. N. (2008). Beyond the frontiers of imperial Russia: From the memoirs of Otto W. Lindholm. Javea, Spain: A. de Haes OWL Publishing.
Законодательное Собрание Приморского края. Закон №161-КЗ от 14 ноября 2001 г. «Об административно-территориальном устройстве Приморского края», в ред. Закона №673-КЗ от 6 октября 2015 г. «О внесении изменений в Закон Приморского края "Об административно-территориальном устройстве Приморского края"». Вступил в силу со дня официального опубликования. Опубликован: "Красное знамя Приморья", №69 (119), 29 ноября 2001 г. (Legislative Assembly of Primorsky Krai. Law #161-KZ of November 14, 2001 On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Primorsky Krai, as amended by the Law #673-KZ of October 6, 2015 On Amending the Law of Primorsky Krai "On the Administrative-Territorial Structure of Primorsky Krai". Effective as of the official publication date.).
Законодательное Собрание Приморского края. Закон №183-КЗ от 6 декабря 2004 г. «О Находкинском городском округе». Вступил в силу 1 января 2005 г.. Опубликован: "Ведомости Законодательного Собрания Приморского края", №77, 8 декабря 2004 г. (Legislative Assembly of Primorsky Krai. Law #183-KZ of December 6, 2004 On Nakhodkinsky Urban Okrug. Effective as of January 1, 2005.).
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