The industry of Penza region at the initial stage of the Great Patriotic War in archival documents and regional historiography (by the example of plant No. 704 in Kamenka village)

Background. Despite a significant number of publications about the Penza region during the Great Patriotic War, information about individual industrial enterprises remains incomplete and requires clarification on a number of parameters. The article is devoted to certain aspects of the activities of the military plant No. 704 in Kamenka. Materials and methods. The work is written mainly on the basis of poorly developed materials from the State Archive of Penza region. The methods used were dialectical, comparative-historical and historical-critical. Results. Some outdated information about plant No. 704 has been re vised. Conclusions. The placement of evacuated equipment in the open air was short-lived, and two main production buildings were completed in October. The date of the start of ammunition production should be moved to an earlier date. In 1941, the plant produced 57-mm shells, from January 1942 – 45-mm shells, production of mortar mines at the Kamensk plant began in the spring of 1942.