The Nizhny Novgorod Fair is a historic district where the largest fair of the Russian Empire once took place. Today, it houses the Central Exhibition Center of Nizhny Novgorod. The Main Fair House hosts the exhibition "Russia, My History," and is located in the riverside part of the city.

The architectural complex was designed by Karl Treyman, Alexander von Hohen, and Alexey Trambitsky. The foundation of the Main Fair House was laid on June 22, 1889, and on July 15, 1890, the day of the fair's opening, the building was ceremoniously consecrated.

The construction cost Russian merchants 500 thousand rubles, and the Main House became one of the largest passages in Russia. The first floor housed 70 shops, while the second floor was occupied by the fair's office and committee, a branch of the State Bank, post office, telegraph, and restaurant. In the central part of the second floor was a luxurious hall for public meetings, known as the Heraldic Hall, due to its decoration with the coats of arms of the provinces of the Russian Empire.

The Main Fair House was equipped with the latest technology: it had 500 electric lamps and 15 lanterns, as well as a telephone, water supply, and sewage system. The area in front of the building was paved, with a large cast-iron fountain installed in 1869 at its center. Nearby, an electrical substation was built to supply power to the entire fair.

The Main House became a source of pride for Russian merchants, who from that moment owned the entire Nizhny Novgorod Fair.

In his speech at the opening of the Main House, the fair manager N.M. Baranov noted: "In this house, everything is Russian: labor and materials, Russian builders such as Shipov, Bugrov, Bashkirov, Kurbatov, and others, the project of talented Russian architects, performers, Russian people."

The revolution did not spare the Nizhny Novgorod Fair. It briefly revived during the NEP period but was liquidated in 1930 as a "socially hostile phenomenon." The fair premises were used as dormitories and various offices. The place, which symbolized wealth and success for over a century, turned into urban slums. The situation changed in the 1970s when the area began to be reconstructed. Dilapidated buildings were demolished, and new houses appeared in their place. A "Children's World" store opened in the Main House.