Barnaul was founded during Russia's push to establish itself as a great power in Europe. Peter the Great's reforms had pushed the country in the right direction, and the country was mobilized to exploit its natural resources and production potential.

The discovery of rich copper deposits at the foothills of the Altai mountains led to the construction of the first copper-smelting works in Kolyvan. Later, in 1730 the team sent by Akinfy Demidov, the famous factory-owner from the Urals, selected a site at the mouth of the Barnaulka River for a new and larger metal-works. But copper was not the only thing that attracted Akinfy Demidov. The explorers of the Altai foothills thought that silver might also be present in that area, prompted by the discovery of numerous silver ornaments from the Altai ancient barrows.

At that time Russia did not possess rich deposits of silver. When silver ore was discovered in the Altai, in Zmeinaya (Snake) mountain region, the fate of Demidov's mines and metalworks was predetermined. On May 1st, 1747, they were taken over by the crown in a special decree of Empress Elizaveta Petrovna to become the major silver center of Russia.

In the 18th and early 19th centuries, 90 per cent of Russian silver was produced in the Altai. The largest silver-smelting works was in Barnaul. The settlement kept growing and in 1771 it acquired the status of a mining town that was one of the largest in Siberia. The name "mining town" was not a random designation; in all regards, the town's life was focused on mining production. Russian history records only two mining towns - Ekaterinburg and Barnaul.