In 1876, a single-altar church in honor of the Slavic educators Cyril and Methodius was built in the two-story building of the Orenburg Men's Gymnasium, under the direction of the director, actual state councilor Andrei Alexeyevich Meshkov. Funds for the construction were raised through subscriptions. The holy antimins was consecrated on January 13, 1891, by the Bishop of Orenburg and Urals, Makariy. The church was well supplied with utensils and vestments, but it had no clergy of its own, and the duties of the rector were performed by the teacher of the Law of God. The court adviser Ekaterina Filippovna Abramova bequeathed a monetary capital for the benefit of the clergy for the eternal remembrance of her relatives.

The building of the gymnasium with the Church of Cyril and Methodius was located at the intersection of Nikolayevskaya, Sovetskaya, and Essen streets, Pravda. It has survived to this day, although it has been reconstructed to four floors. It now houses the Orenburg State Pedagogical University.