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Novo-Tikhvin Monastery was founded at the end of the eighteenth century under the [[abbess]] Mother Taisia. The initial structure was an outgrowth of the almshouse located at the Ekaterinburg cemetery church that was dedicated to the [[Dormition]] of the Most Holy [[Theotokos]]. The small community of monastic women was transformed into a cenobitic women's monastery by an imperial order in 1809. Through the zealous work of the nuns, coupled with the aid of the people of Ekaterinburg, the monastery was built and grew to be the largest monastery in the Urals, drawing to itself hundreds of pilgrims. On [[feast day]]s, hundreds of [[pilgrim]]s came to venerate the main [[relics|relic]] of the monastery, the icon of the Tikhvin Theotokos.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, the monastery was populated by about one thousand sisters. The monastery had grown significantly, containing within its grounds six churches, residences for the sisters, and workshops. By 1917, 18 workshops were used actively by the sisters, who worked at gold- and silk-embroidery, spinning and sewing, and [[iconography]] and [[photography]]. The monastery also supported a hospital, orphanage, diocesan school with a library, and a bakery.
Through the nineteenth century, the monastery was visited by members of the Russian royal family, including Emperor Alexander I in 1824 and, as heir to the throne, the future Alexander II in 1837. Additionally, St. [[John of Kronstadt]] served a Divine [[Liturgy]] at the monastery. The [[patron saint|patronal]] [[feast day]] of [[June 15]] was famous for the Tikhvin fairs, but, following the Bolshevik revolution in November 1917, life at the monastery was devastatingly changed, and, by 1920, the monastery was closed.
