Before the revolution, the square was called the St. Nicholas Church, which was located on it. The square was uninhabited, had no road surface and was a stopping place for carts carrying fish from Astrakhan and Tsaritsyn to Moscow and other cities.
During its existence, rallies and strikes have been held on the square many times. In the 1920s, in memory of Bloody Sunday, it received a new name - the square on January 9th.
During the first five-year plans the appearance of the city changed drastically, and the appearance of the square changed: numerous houses were erected on the site of the destroyed St. Nicholas Church.
During the Battle of Stalingrad, a group of Soviet soldiers under the command of Lieutenant Afanasyev (sergeant Pavlov one of the fighters of the group, needed heroic examples, and therefore the house was later called the house of sergeant Pavlov) consolidated in one of the houses, and defended itself for 58 days. During the war, the building of the square was seriously damaged. In memory of the defenders, the area on January 9 was renamed the Oborona Square.
In 1951 four identical dwelling houses were built, forming around the house Pavlov's square, thereby determining the character of the further development of the square. Later, new houses were united by a semicircular colonnade, and the end of Pavlov's house was decorated with a bas-relief depicting the image of the hero-winner against the background of episodes of defensive battles.
After the installation in 1960 of the monument to Lenin, the square received the name of the leader of the proletariat. The monument to Lenin was created by sculptor EV Vuchetich and architect TA Zakharov. The bronze sculpture of Lenin was made at the Mytishchi plant of artistic casting. The total height of the monument (together with the pedestal) is 18.8 meters.