January 5 is the birthday of the famous Kiev publisher of late XIX - early XX century Stefan Vasilyevich Kulzhenko. In scientific and technical library of the University, this date was marked by the presentation of books published at the time in the printing house of Kulzhenko.
Stephen Kulzhenko was born in the village Baryshevka in Cossack family. At age 11, he became a pupil at the Kiev bookshop of Hungarian J. Walter. After a few years as a result of bankruptcy Walter he worked in various publishing houses of Kiev. Eventually, he became the general manager typography I. Davydenko, the most advanced at that time in Kiev. In 1862 Kulzhenko together with one of his relatives I. Davydenko rented the company, and in 1873 became its sole tenant.
At the end of 1875 S.Kulzhenko opened his own store on Khreschatyk. In 1880 the new typography Kulzhenko on Novoelizavetinsky Street (now - str. Pushkin) started to operate . Printing press was equipped with five large quick printing machines, which were powered by steam engines, as well as four small printing presses and three lithographic machines. In 1887, 85 people worked here, at the beginning of the XX century - 220, and in 1905 - 300. For comparison: there worked in Kiev plant - plant "Grether and Krivanek" (now "Bolshevik") –thousand of workers. Printing Complex Kulzhenko united own printing press, the two foundry, lithograph, stereotypes, collotype, galvanic plastics workshop. Soon together with I.Chokolov, G.Frontskevich K.Milevsky he became one of the founders of the school for pupils printers. A famous industrialist Nikolai Tereshchenko was the main patron of the school. On the northern outskirts of Kiev Stefan Kulzhenko bought some suburban areas and built residential houses for his workers. This area today is called dachas Kulzhenko.
Picture books were the biggest pride Kulzhenko. The best and most well-known are the book of Alexander's "Cathedral of St. Vladimir in Kiev" (1898) in the form of the ancient Russian manuscript and not less perfect book M. Zakharchenko "Kiev now and before" (1888), which describes the the city with 105 illustrations in the text and photo illustrations on separate tabs.
Kulzhenko cooperated with Kiev Society of literacy and published scientific and popular literature. At various times there were printed the newspapers "Zaria", "Kyiv word", "Kiev newspaper". A notable phenomenon not only for Ukraine magazines were "Agriculture", "Engineer" and "Proceedings of the Polytechnic Institute".
Typography Kulzhenko was one of the six largest publishing houses in Kiev, which for decades produced with 50% of all printed materials. Thanks to illustrated edition, printing house Kulzhenko competed with the best in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Warsaw. For high printing design publication Kulzhenko times received gold and silver medals at the All-Russia Exhibition. The total number of publications Kulzhenko printing house included more than 1,000 titles.
Stefan Vasilyevich Kulzhenko died in Kiev November 16, 1906.
In STL NTUU "KPI" there are more than a hundred books published in the printing house of S.V.Kulzhenka.