The settlement of Polotnyany Zavod emerged due to the establishment of a sailcloth factory in 1718 by order of Peter I. It was founded by the Kaluga merchant Timofey Filatov-Karamyshev. In 1720, he, together with Afanasy Abramovich Goncharov, who was the great-great-grandfather of A.S. Pushkin's wife, opened a paper factory.

In 1735, the factory became the property of the Goncharov family. Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin visited this place in 1830 and 1834. The Goncharov estate was laid out in the first quarter of the 18th century under Afanasy Abramovich Goncharov. Here, the main estate house, factory buildings, the Church of the Transfiguration, the Horse Yard, and the Spassky Gates were constructed.

In 1775, Catherine the Great visited Polotnyany Zavod, which by that time had become one of the most modern productions. The main house of the estate, built under Afanasy Abramovich, was a red palace with white baroque decor. The architect is unknown, but some researchers suggest it could have been B. Rastrelli. In 1777, the house was reconstructed according to a design by K.I. Blank in the style of the late 18th century.

After the death of A.A. Goncharov in 1785, the estate passed to his sons Nikolai Afanasevich Goncharov and Afanasy Nikolayevich Goncharov, the grandfather of Natalia Goncharova. The heirs were not as enterprising as their predecessor but were forced to invest significant funds in maintaining the estate.

Construction of the manor house continued: in 1787, a third floor was added, and in 1792, 14 rooms on the second floor were decorated with painting and stucco. In 1811, a new ceiling was made in the Large Living Room, and the facade acquired classical decoration. These works involved craftsmen who decorated the Zolotaryov estate in Kaluga and the Shchepochkin house in Polotnyany Zavod.

From October 15 to 17, 1812, after the Battle of Maloyaroslavets, the estate housed the headquarters of the Russian army and the headquarters of Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov. From 1832 to 1860, the estate was owned by Dmitry Nikolayevich Goncharov, the grandson of Afanasy Nikolayevich Goncharov, and then it passed to his son Dmitry Dmitrievich Goncharov.

By the beginning of the 20th century, the Goncharov estate in Polotnyany Zavod fell into decline. The last owner was actress Vera Konstantinovna Goncharova, the widow of D.D. Goncharov.

In the years 1920-1940, Polotnyany Zavod suffered significant destruction. In 1919, the house of the Spaso-Transfiguration Church was destroyed, and the Goncharov family crypt was opened. In the 1960s, a cafeteria was built on the site of the church. Before the war, the estate house housed a school and advanced training courses for workers in the paper industry. On the first day of the German occupation of Polotnyany Zavod during the Great Patriotic War, the estate house burned down, leaving only the walls.

Restoration began in 1972 under the guidance of architect V.A. Zhilina, the great-great-granddaughter of S.N. Goncharov, the younger brother of Natalia Goncharova. In June 1999, to mark the 200th anniversary of Pushkin's birth, the historical, architectural, and natural museum-estate 'Polotnyany Zavod' was opened to visitors.