Shemysheyka

Shemysheyka lies on the Uza River southeast of Penza, its old centre on the high right bank beside the forest. In 1710 the village had eighty households and 337 inhabitants. Seven years later a raid from the Kuban devastated it: the church and all the peasant yards were burned. By 1718 its households included peasants paying tribute and newcomers from several Russian provinces. The village was rebuilt after the destruction and remained a community on the forested edge of the Sura country.