Ivan Nikolov Ivanov () (1891–1965) was a

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

n engineer and the second longest serving

Mayor of Sofia This is a chronological list of mayors of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, since that post was established after the Liberation of Bulgaria in 1878. The first governor of Sofia was Petr Alabin. Initially, the mayors of Sofia were assigned by the ...

(25 May 1934 – 9 September 1944). Born in Sliven, he finished primary school in

Stara Zagora Stara Zagora (, ) is a city in Bulgaria, and the administrative capital of Stara Zagora Province. It is located in the Upper Thracian Plain, near the cities of Kazanlak, Plovdiv, and Sliven. Its population is 121,582 making it the sixth largest c ...

and secondary school in Sofia, after which he enrolled at the Military School of Sofia, but left before graduating. In 1915, he graduated with a degree in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...

from the

Technical University of Munich The Technical University of Munich (TUM or TU Munich; ) is a public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. It specializes in engineering, technology, medicine, and applied and natural sciences. Established in 1868 by King Ludwig II ...

. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he headed a railroad construction project in

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

. In 1919, he was appointed deputy head of the water supply department of Sofia. In 1924, he started working on what turned out to be his most recognised work: the water supply line from

Rila Rila (, ) is the highest mountain range of Bulgaria, the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, and Southeast Europe. It is situated in southwestern Bulgaria and forms part of the Rila–Rhodope Mountains, Rhodope Massif. The highest summit is Musala at an e ...

mountain to Sofia. The project had a total length of 82 km, which included 38.5 km of channels, 17.9 km of tunnels and 25.3 km of tubes. The line was completed in 1933. In 1934, Ivanov was elected mayor of Sofia. He focused his efforts on eliminating the corruption and bureaucracy in City Hall. He published monthly the expenses of the city. In 1938, the first urban plan for Sofia was created. During his term, all the streets of Sofia were paved and bus and trolley bus mass transit was introduced. He also started large-scale tree planting on the streets of the capital. By the end of his term, Ivanov was planning the construction of Beli Iskar Dam, which was intended to feed the Sofia water supply line. After the

Bulgarian coup d'état of 1944 Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

, Ivanov was imprisoned and sentenced to life for political reasons. Nevertheless, his abilities as a hydro-engineer were recognised by the communist rulers and he was allowed to continue working on the Beli Iskar Dam. Initially, he worked from his prison cell before he was freed. He died in 1965.

References

{{Authority control 1891 births 1965 deaths People from Sliven Technical University of Munich alumni Bulgarian civil engineers Mayors of Sofia