In pre-revolutionary Russia, many military and hereditary nobles successfully held civil positions, including the posts of city mayors. One such example is Lieutenant General Ivan Nikolaevich Zvorikin, who served as the mayor of Rostov-on-Don for over ten years.

Ivan Nikolaevich was born in 1861 into a family of hereditary nobles from Kostroma province. He received an excellent military education, graduating from the 3rd Moscow Cadet Corps and the Mikhail Artillery School in 1882, as well as the General Staff Academy. His first assignment was to the Guard Horse Artillery Brigade. The young officer quickly earned the respect of his superiors and the affection of his subordinates. In 1886, he became a lieutenant, in 1894, a staff captain, and a year later was promoted to captain with a reappointment to lieutenant colonel. Such a brilliant career was a dream for many officers of that time, but for Ivan Nikolaevich, it became a reality.

Zvorikin met the Russo-Japanese War as the commander of the 1st battery of the 1st Grenadier Artillery Brigade and soon went to the front, where he demonstrated his best military qualities and was promoted to colonel in 1904. For two years, he commanded an artillery division, and in 1905, he participated in suppressing terrorist uprisings by revolutionaries in Saratov province, for which he received gratitude from Stolypin.

In 1906, Zvorikin became the commander of the 3rd division of the 1st Grenadier Artillery Brigade, and in 1907, at Stolypin's initiative, he was appointed mayor of Rostov-on-Don. Under his leadership, the city maintained calm and prospered until the revolution. Zvorikin actively participated in organizing celebrations and charitable events, including the tree-planting festival, of which he was the chairman.

In 1910, for his service merits, Zvorikin was promoted to major general. With the onset of World War I, on August 3, 1914, he became the commander of the Rostov garrison, combining this position with that of mayor until November of the same year. On November 16, 1914, he resigned due to health reasons, receiving the rank of lieutenant general, a uniform, and a pension. However, in February 1915, Zvorikin returned to service and was appointed to the disposal of the artillery inspector general, remaining in the army until August 1917.

In December 1917, the Bolsheviks captured Rostov but were soon expelled by the legitimate ataman of the All-Great Don Army, Alexei Kaledin. In February, they returned after the withdrawal of the Volunteer Army during the Ice Campaign and initiated a red terror. From May 1918 to January 1920, white volunteer and Cossack units were in the city, but then Rostov-on-Don again experienced days of red terror. The fate of Ivan Nikolaevich is unknown; he disappeared after 1917 and was likely killed by one of the supporters of the red terror. To this day, his memory is preserved, and the building where Zvorikin lived from 1907 to 1917 now bears his name.