Dimitrovgrad or Caribrod is a town located at the southeast of Serbia and it represents a place on „the imperial road“ which has connected Belgrade, Sofia and Contantinopole for centuries. Since the ancient times, this territory has been a crucial point for connection between East and West. In 3rd Century AC there has been a road named “Via Militaris”, with various stations for rest and horse change, including also “Mulatio Translitus”, in the immediate vicinity of the settlement of Balanstra, while, according to the various archeological researches, the traces of the first settlements on this territory had been recorded from Neolithic times.
The surroundings of Caribrod and Caribrod itself are mentioned in the works of many travel writers and statesmen under different names: Zaribrodt, Czaribrod, Saribrot, Spribrot, Zaritvrodt. For more than four centuries, the Caríbrod region was under Ottoman rule, then it was annexed to the Principality of Bulgaria by the decision of the Congress of Berlin in 1878, and finally, a year later, in 1879, the border between Serbia and Bulgaria was established. During the same year, many residents from the Pirot area, primarily merchants and craftsmen, moved to Caribrod, contributing to the economic and cultural development of the town.
According to various historical data, at the end of the 19th as well as at the beginning of the 20th century, the town of Caribrod had been economically and culturally developed, and one of the most important segments, which partly contributes to the urbanization of this place, is the infrastructure. Namely, the construction of the railway brought many benefits to the place itself and was put into operation in 1888, thus, with the arrival of the railway, the image of the town is greatly changed.
A decade following the liberation from the Turks, the first printed media appeared in Caribrod. The first written trace regarding cultural activities in Caribrod has been found in the scientific-literary journal “Domashen uchitel”. The first issue, published in February 1889, emphasizes the importance of the establishment of town library. Two years later, more precisely in 1901, the political magazine “Caribrod” has been established. In 1909, a weekly magazine named “Nishava” was established, and it had been printed until 1912. After being paused for almost a year, this magazine has been published until September 1915, when it was cancelled due to the beginning of the World War I. Following WWI, in 1919, a weekly magazine for humour, satire and social life named „Кlopotar“ was issued.
In 1894, the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary was built.
The memorial stone to the fallen Serbian and Bulgarian soldiers in the Serbian-Bulgarian War was built in 1887 on the Neshkovo hill above Dimitrovgrad in he memory of the Serbian-Bulgarian War of 1885.
The official history claims that the cultural centre (Chitalishte) in Caribrod was established in 1898, thanks to the local acting society which has been performing for an entire decade in order to collect the necessary funds. During the following period, which had been conditioned by various social and historical circumstances, the cultural centre experienced a series of. Following World War II, the Library has been established, which had functioned as a part of the Cultural Centre institution up until 1996. According to Municipal Assembly Declaration in 1996, the Library becomes an independent institution named the National Library of Dimitrovgrad. The Library also includes the Local Museum collection, and one of the most famous activities of the Library is the publishing activity, which results in 97 published books from local authors, written both in Serbian and Bulgarian, as well as in the local dialect. The Library frequently organizes Literary evenings, programmes, it also realizes various projects and creative workshops for children. In 2004, it was named National Library „Detko Petrov“, according to the famous Yugosllavian writer, who was born in this area.
In 1909, Caribrod gets its first telephone line. During the same year, „Minov and Hadziev“ printing house, the book named „Poetry and prose“ by Hristo Gotsev was printed. It is the first printed book in Caribrod and it marks the beginning of publishing activity, which will be continued by the Library 9 decades later.
In 1914, the third grade of Primary school is established in Caribrod. Namely, the official beginning of education in Caribrod is related to early 1869, when the first school in settlement “Strosena cesma” was established, in the guesthouse of Cvetko Ivanov.
November 27, 1919, following the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine, Caribrod was assigned to the newly established Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, and it officially becomes a part of the new state on November 6th 1920.
In 1927, the town was electrified, and it was supplied with electricity from the power plant of Caribrodski brothers. This year is also important from a cultural point of view, since it was the year when the town got its own cinema.
In 1937, the town of Caribrod had a school, the Banovina Hospital, the Serbian Headquarters, the Tax Administration, the Financial Control, the Post Office, the Customs… In addition to the military barracks, an Officers’ Home was also built in 1935. Caribrod also had a Commercial Bank. Economic life was characterized by numerous cooperatives, such as the Dairy-Cattle, Purchasing and Consuming, Agricultural, Civil, Industrial, Beekeeping, etc. When it comes to foreign visitors, there were hotels with food and accommodation, such as: “Oslobodjenje (Liberation)”, “Balkan“, “Yugoslavia“, “International“, “Solun (Thessaloniki)” and others.
In 1946, the construction of the Cultural centre was commenced, and during the same year, an amateur cultural-artistic society named „Hristo Botev“ was established. The Cultural centre building was officially opened on January 1st 1950, which gave a different cultural frame to the entire environment. The town gallery in Dimitrovgrad was established in 1955, and it is a home of dozens of exhibitions every year.
In 1950, according to the Government of FPRY, the name of Caribrod was changed to Dimitrovgrad, in honor of Georgi Dimitrov, the president of Bulgaria.
During the post-war period of reconstruction and development, in the middle of the 20th century, Dimitrovgrad also became an industrial place. Enterprises and factories were established, and a large number of workers were employed:
– In 1947, The social enterprise for the production and trade of furniture “Vasil Ivanov Cile” was founded, as well as the catering enterprise “Balkan”.
– March 1948. – foundation of the construction company „Greben planina“, which had operated within the enterprise „Vasil Ivanov Cile“ until 1957, when it became independent, and from 1959 it operated under the name of „Gradnja“.
– The cloathing factory „Svoboda“ was founded in 1952.
– The state enterprise for the manufacture of the stone cube “Granit” Donja Nevlja was founded in 1953.
– In 1958, the factory of patent locks and car parts „FABRAD“ was founded, and in је 1960 its name was changed into „Mehanichar“.
– The rubber industry of Dimitrovgrad – GID was founded in 1959.
– The joint stock company „Metalac“ for performing locksmith and tinsmith works was founded in 1967.
– Lignite exploitation enterprise, mine „Vidlich“ in the village of Mazgosh was founded in 1997.
In 1991, within the Cultural centre, the „Caribrod“ radio and television was founded. The cable distribution equipment was purchased with residents’ funds, while the donors provided funds required for remaining necessary equipment.
The monastery dedicated to St. John the Theologian in the village of Poganovo, has been listed on the State heritage list since 1949 and it has been a part of the World Heritage list since 1979. In 1982, the Monastery was entered in the register of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts as a cultural asset of great importance. It was founded by the Serbian ruler Konstantin Dejanovic Dragas, immediately before the loss of state independence of medieval Serbia, and it was dedicated to St. John the Theologian. It was built in the late 14th century and painted a century later.