Before the revolution, Rostov-on-Don developed rapidly, and with it, new churches appeared in the city. In addition to the parishioners of the Orthodox Church of the new rite, many Old Believers lived in Rostov-on-Don, who also needed a large church. In 1913, the Old Believer's Protection Cathedral was built according to the design of architect Vladimir Alexandrovich Pokrovsky. Interestingly, the architect's surname coincides with the name of the church. Today, the cathedral is once again open to the faithful.

Most of the Old Believers in Rostov were migrants, and their community appeared here as early as the 18th century. The first place for prayer was a wooden Protection Church built in 1813. However, with the growth of the community in the early 20th century, it was decided to build a new stone cathedral, the funds for which were provided by merchant Panin.

Old Believers were generally well-off people. Their strict religious rules prohibited the use of nicotine and alcohol, prescribed hard work, and respect for family values. Many well-known Old Believer merchants are connected with the history of Rostov, including bread industrialist Elpidifor Paramonov and entrepreneurs Ivan Panchenko and Pyotr Maximov. The most famous was Nikolai Alexeyevich Panin, whose funds were used to build the stone church of the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos in 1913.

The Protection Cathedral is designed in the ancient Russian style. At the entrance to the church, there are cast-iron columns with stamps from the Rostov factory of Feodor V. Nittner. The artistic forging of the facade and window grilles has been preserved.

The architect had to place the church on a small plot, which explains its unusual architecture. A semicircular apse adjoins the refectory, with an asymmetrically located bell tower and narthex. The bell tower, refectory, and apse are topped with small domes, which were dismantled in the 1920s and restored in the 1980s according to sketches by A. P. Zimin. The window openings of the refectory are decorated with decorative plaster.

The utensils and iconostasis for the church were donated by Old Believer merchants Paramonov and Solovyov. Many old icons have been preserved, but the iconostasis had to be repainted anew.

The church accommodates about 500 people. The floor is laid with Mettlach tiles, and bricks from the factory of Pyotr Ivanovich Ilyin were used in its construction.

After the arrival of Soviet power, Old Believers faced persecution. In the mid-1930s, the Protection Church and the old wooden church were closed. The rector, Father Savva Sinelnikov, was arrested and perished in the camps. The church housed workshops of the radio factory 'Komsomolets.' Some icons were hidden by the faithful, while the iconostasis was destroyed. Over the years of Soviet power, the cathedral suffered greatly, but it still survived. Today, the building of the Protection Cathedral is a cultural heritage site of regional significance.