The author quotes from a history of the nearby larger town, Kobryn
Legend has it that our city Kobryn was founded in the 11
th or 12
th century.
The first records came from the annals of Ipatievski in the year 1287. In this time, the city of Kobryn was part of Galichko-Volyn Principality. Later, in the 13-14
th centuries, the city of Kobryn was captured by the Duchy of Lithuania.
From 1404 – 1517 there was a separate Kobryn Principality.
From 1549 – 1656 Kobryn and its surrounding lands were under the control of the Polish
Queen Bona.
In 1648, Kobryn was freed from Polish rule by the division of
Bohdan Khmelensky under the command of
Colonel Ivan Bohun.
As seen in history, from 1795 to 1915 Kobryn had the same fate as our Divin.
The town of Divin was located 35 kilometers from the center of Kobryn and 245 kilometers from provincial city of Grodno.
A distance of 3 kilometers from the center of Divin, on the road from Divin to Kobryn, there is a wonderful natural landmark and witness (albeit not a living one) to Russia’s glory. This –a beautiful oak– is called
Suvorovsky by the people, after the Russian
Colonel Suvorov. He brought freedom to these lands from the Polish enslavement of our people.
Not far from Divin runs the Kiev-Brest railway line. Originally, the nearest railway station was in the town of Malorita.
In 1882, a Woodland railway line was laid through Kobryn. From that time, the city of Kobryn has been the site of the closest railway station for Divin. This new branch of the railway line is called Luninetz–Brest and is comfortable for our residents.
{
24} In 1863 in the county of our Kobryn and Divin a Polish insurgent group was operating under the command of
Pan Romuld Traugutt.
The author turns to 19th century data about the area, again quoting from a history of Kobryn:
Divin’s public school (one for Divin and the neighboring villages) was opened in 1862. It was located in a public house. Education in the school was free. The state treasury gave out 200 rubles annually for the maintenance of the school. The principal and teacher of the school was Lev Pavlovich Prokopik. He was from an Orthodox background and a graduate of the teacher’s seminary in Molodechno.
The conditions of his job were as follows: he received payment in the amount of 150 rubles and a free apartment.
The law of God was a mandatory subject in the school. The priest of the Divin church, Ignatius Peterovich, was invited to the school for this purpose. He was educated and was a graduate of the Lithuanian Spiritual Seminary. He was of the Orthodox faith. He had a salary of 25 rubles.
This was the first public school for peasant children, which was attended only by boys.
The author gives us rare data snapshots of the Divin community in 1878, 1886, and 1898:
In 1878, 2,490 inhabitants lived in Divin; among them 1,201 men and 1,289 women; among them were 988 Jews. On the land of Divin were 3 churches, one prayer house. There was also a Catholic parish house of the Dean of Kobryn. The soils surrounding the place were swampy, light, very fertile, many forests.
In 1886, in the town of Divin,there were 159 owner’s yards and private farms that consisted of 1,644 residents. In the town there were 3 Orthodox churches, one synagogue, one school, 5 retail stores, and 2 taverns. In the course of the year, there were 3 regular fairs. Originally a windmill and a distillery warehouse existed in Divin.
In 1896, a small school for girls was opened. It was called the Divin Literacy School. The teacher there was a parish clerk, the Orthodox Ivan Shirinski. About 12 – 14 people attended this school.
In 1898, the priest Vasily Gapanovich opened a tearoom in the town. There they did not serve alcoholic drinks. This tearoom was organized by the Trust of National Sobriety.
