The red brick building looks very elegant. Archives mention that its owner was not a merchant, but a retired military officer who discovered entrepreneurial skills and engaged in the timber trade. The benefits provided to retired servicemen in pre-revolutionary Russia helped the enterprising Khovanov develop his business. Construction of the house with 25 rooms began in 1908, but Khovanov himself did not manage to live in it, as he tragically died after falling from the construction scaffolding.

After the Revolution, the building was nationalized and successively used by various state agencies: Cheka, GPU, NKVD, MGB, and currently, it houses the FSB administration.