The Ulyanovsk Regional Museum of Local Lore named after Ivan Goncharov presents the coats of arms of the uyezd towns of the Simbirsk Governorate.
At the end of the 17th century, the seal of the Simbirsk voivode depicted a lion with a crown above its head and a sword in its raised paw. The emblem of Simbirsk — a column topped with a crown — first appeared on the banner of the Simbirsk regiment in 1712. After undergoing some minor changes, it was placed in the armorial of 1730. This armorial emblem was probably borrowed from the book “Symbols and Emblems”, published in Amsterdam in 1705. The motto associated with it — “Supported by Honor” — helps to understand its meaning. In 1780, the Simbirsk viceroyalty was formed, and on December 22 of the same year, Catherine II approved the coat of arms: a blue field of the shield depicts a white column on a white four-sided pedestal topped with a gold crown. It was based on an earlier coat of arms. In 1796, after the viceroyalty was transformed into a governorate, this coat of arms became official for the Simbirsk Governorate.
At the end of the 18th century, the coats of arms of the uyezd cities of the Simbirsk Governorate were approved. The field of each coat of arms included the distinctive features of each town, for example, the coat of arms of the city of Syzran depicted a black bull in a golden field, and the coat of arms of Buinsk featured a silver sheep in a green field. In the first half of the 19th century, the Simbirsk Governorate consisted of ten uyezds: Simbirsky, Sengileyevsky, Stavropolsky, Samarsky, Syzransky, Karsunsky, Alatyrsky, Ardatovsky, Kurmyshsky and Buinsky. With the establishment of the Samara Governorate in 1851, it also welcomed two Trans-Volga uyezds of the Simbirsk Governorate — Samarsky and Stavropolsky. From that time until 1920, the Simbirsk Governorate was divided into eight uyezds.
In 1878, some improvements were made to the coat of arms of the town of Simbirsk and the governorate: there is a silver pillar against an azure shield, topped with a gold imperial crown embellished with ribbons of the Order of St. Andrew.
On May 14, 1928, during the introduction of the economic zones of the USSR, the Simbirsk Governorate was abolished, and its territory became part of the Middle Volga region.
