The settlement was first mentioned in the 16th century, when the area was part of the Polish
Duchy of Prussia, near the border with
Lithuania. In 1772, it became part of the newly formed
Prussian province of
East Prussia. In 1860, Eydtkuhnen became the eastern terminus and border station of the
Prussian Eastern Railway, connecting
Berlin with the
Saint Petersburg–Warsaw Railway in the
Russian Empire. To continue their voyage, passengers—e.g., of the
Nord Express luxury train coming from Saint Petersburg—had to change over from Russian
broad gauge to
standard gauge railcars to Berlin and
Paris, leaving on the other side of the platform. The same interchange in the opposite direction was provided at the Russian train station in neighboring
Virbalis. The Eydtkuhnen station building, erected according to plans by
Friedrich August Stüler, offered luxuriously furnished waiting rooms and restaurants. The railway connection decisively promoted Eydtkuhnen's development, and the settlement expanded to the north. The local railway station, post office and customs offices had 508, 110 and 54 employees, respectively. Local trade was dominated by Jews, and there was a synagogue. The
Neo-Romanesque Lutheran parish church was built according to plans by
Friedrich Adler and consecrated in 1889; the settlement received
town privileges in 1922, when the population reached 10,000. Nevertheless, Eydtkuhnen was devastated during the
Russian invasion of East Prussia in 1914 and again in 1945 during the
East Prussian Offensive of the
Red Army. After World War I and the
Act of Independence, the border crossing led to Lithuania, while
corridor trains provided the railway connection to Berlin. After Nazi Germany's defeat in
World War II, the settlement became part of the
Soviet Union, while the remaining German population was
expelled. Up to today, large parts of Chernyshevskoye are a military restricted area. ==Demographics==