Vershina, Bokhansky District

The St. Stanislaus Church in Vershina in 2019.

The village was established in 1910 by Polish immigrants from Congress Poland, mostly originating from the regions of the Lesser Poland, and Dąbrowa Basin. The settlers were encouraged to move there by the promise of receiving 15 dessiatins of land and 100 rubles. The area was inhabited by the native population of Buryats, who helped settlers in the first years of the settlement. Both populations kept good relations with each other.[1][3]

In 1915 in the village was opened the St. Stanislaus Church. It functioned until 1928, or 1929, when the Soviet administration decided to demolish it. Thanks to the protest of local population, it never happened, however the church still remained closed, and its interiors devastated.[4] In 1938, during the Great Purge, 30 inhabitants of the village were executed by NKVD officers.[5] During the Soviet era, population was also forced into the russification, having to hide speaking Polish or practicing their Catholic religion. Despite that, the population kept their language and religion, still practicing both to this day.[1] Following the fall of the Soviet Union, the local church reopened in 1992.[4]

Currently, the village is a tourist attraction among tourists from Poland, fascinated by the presence of Polish population in Siberia.[1] In 2019, in the village was placed the memorial plaque with the names of the original settlers of the village, to commemorate their memory. In 2021, the village was visited by Krzysztof Krajewski, the ambassador of Poland to Russia.[5]