At the end of the 19th century, among the predominantly one-storey buildings of the city, the building at the corner of the current Proskurivska and Proskurivske Pidpillia streets looked majestic. This magnificent palace was built at the expense of Ludwig Ivanovych Derevoed – a wealthy city dweller who had great authority among the beau monde of Proskuriv. In the history of the city L.I. Derevoed entered as the first owner of a pharmacy in Proskuriv. Ludwig Derevoed’s pharmacy was equipped according to the latest fashion trends: three-story, modern in style (by the way, very popular at the beginning of the 20th century). Two floors of the building were allocated for housing, the first for commerce. The fourth floor “grew” only in the 1960s. This building is still considered the most beautiful construction in the history of the old city, which has survived to this day. Imagine, cellars with arched vaults have been preserved in the Derevoed’s pharmacy! It is said that this is how the legend about the underground passages through which you can pass from the beginning to the end of the Proskurivska street arose.
A quote from Yurii Datsenko’s novel “The Ripper’s Trap” will help you feel better the atmosphere of this house: “Having come up with such a pharmacy a hundred years ago, Derevoed would definitely have earned accusations of witchcraft and got his walls set on fire. (…) There were several rooms-laboratories, equipped with expensive and modern equipment, which made the Pharmacy of Derevoed the best not only in the city, but also in the district, if not in the region!”
