On the corner of Lenin Street and St. Innocent Lane in Blagoveshchensk stands one of the city's most remarkable buildings. Its architect was E.I. Sheffer, and the structure is designed in the neo-Russian style, where decorative elements of Russian wooden architecture are embodied in stone.

The trading house 'Kunst und Albers' was founded in 1864 by Germans from Hamburg, Gustav Albers and Gustav Kunst. The company had branches in all major population centers of the Far East. From 1864 to 1914, 'Kunst und Albers' was the leading trading enterprise in the region, with 32 branches and offices in cities such as St. Petersburg, Moscow, Odessa, Riga, Warsaw, Kobe, and Nagasaki. Starting with wholesale trade in Chinese goods, the firm grew into a major supplier of agricultural machinery and a transport carrier. The company also provided various forms of insurance and credit.

The department store in Blagoveshchensk was built in 1894, modeled after GUM. Notably, the Russian store for German merchants was constructed by Chinese workers. The building was erected in stages, and the third part was completed almost 20 years after construction began. By 1911, the building acquired its current appearance.

In the store, one could purchase everything from pins to agricultural machines, from delicacies to modern firearms. Even then, Amur buyers showed a love for discounts and a habit of bargaining, which prompted the practical Germans to first raise prices by 5-10%, and then 'forgive' those percentages.

The history of the largest Far Eastern trading enterprise with German capital in Blagoveshchensk ended in 1920. Subsequently, various institutions were housed in the building, such as the Amur Regional Committee of the VKP(b), the regional committee of the RKSY, the editorial office of the newspaper 'Amur Truth', and later, the regional committee of the CPSU and the regional executive committee. Once a magnificent building, it was divided into small rooms for Soviet officials. In 1984, the Amur Regional Local History Museum moved in, where it remains today.