The Mindows were a dynasty of hereditary honorary citizens of the Russian Empire, known among merchants and textile manufacturers from Vichuga, now located in the Ivanovo region. This noble dynasty adhered to the ancient Orthodox faith and made significant contributions to the development of the Social-Democratic society in Russia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as well as in the struggle against Bolshevism. The Mindows were related by kinship to such well-known manufacturing families as Kokorevs, Bakakins, Shchekoldins, Konovalovs, Razoryonovs, and Krasilshchikovs.

Ivan Alexandrovich Mindow (1836-1912) represented the second generation of the dynasty and founded the Moscow branch. In 1817, being a serf, he, along with his family, established paper and dyeing factories in the village of Staraia Golchikha. In 1820, he bought himself and his family out of serfdom. Ivan Alexandrovich had four sons and was one of the largest manufacturers in Vichuga, as well as a significant landowner and property owner. He owned large factories in Navoloki, Yuryevets, and Dolmatovo, and was the main property owner in Kineshma and Vichuga. His ancestral estate was located in the village of Putkovskaya, on the border with Vichuga, and he was buried in the family necropolis in Novaia Golchikha, now Vichuga.

In Moscow, Ivan Mindow owned three mansions: the former house of the city mayor N. Alexeev on Leontievsky Lane, a mansion on Bolshaya Ordynka, and a mansion on Povarskaya. The house on Leontievsky Lane was built in the early 1880s by architect D. Chichagov and currently houses the UN representation and other organizations. The mansion on Bolshaya Ordynka, built in 1836, previously belonged to M. P. Eliseev, likely one of the owners of the famous 'Eliseevsky Stores'. The mansion on Povarskaya, designed by the renowned architect L. Kekushev, is an example of Moscow Art Nouveau and currently houses the Embassy of New Zealand.