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"Moia kratchaishaia zhiznennaia
kanva" ["A Short Autobiography of My Life"], by Genadii V. Iudin,
Tarakanovo, 1903, Dec. 27
(continued) |
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Digital content available
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As Sergius Yakobson explains in his article in the
Library of Congress Information Bulletin (1946), this short autobiography was originally intended for
the Brokhaus-Efron encyclopedia, where, however, it was never published. It
does gives an idea of Iudin's personality and his admiration for the Library of
Congress as the ultimate repository for his collection, to which the papers of
the Russian-American Company belong. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
"An Autobiography of G. V. Iudin," by
Sergius Yakobson, LC Information Bulletin, 1946
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Digital content available
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This includes another copy of the Russian text of "Moia
kratchaishaia zhiznennaia kanva" and an English translation. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Archimandrite Ioasaf to Shelikhov, 1795, May
18
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Archimandrite Ioasaf to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Kodiak Is. with English summary, May
18, 1795
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Digital content available
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At the request of Grigorii Shelikhov, in 1793 Archimandrite Ioasaf (1761-1799)
was appointed head of the Orthodox Spiritual Mission to America by Catherine
II. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Merchandise sent to Moscow and Irkutsk,
1789-1790
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Register of merchandise sent by Grigorii
Shelikhov to Moscow and Irkutsk, Dec. 4,
1789
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Digital content available
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This register lists the furs sent from Alaska to Moscow for sale (sea otter,
fox, sable), as well as the goods ordered from Russia for the colony
(scientific books, sugar, tea, pearls, and a cello). |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Company book of Shelikhov (journal of the ship
Tri Svyatitelia), 1783
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Book of the company of the merchant Grigorii
Shelikhov [Journal of the ship ‘Tri Sviatitelia'], from Nov. 10, 1783 to Feb. 12, 1787
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Digital content available
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This Company Book of Shelikhov's contains a list of all the personnel on his
ship The Three Hierarchs, along with any pertinent
information about them, such as good deeds, various crimes and misdemeanors,
rewards and punishments received, and causes of death. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Instructions to Shelikhov, 1794, May
12
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Instruction of Shelikhov as a member of the
Northeast America Company Irkutsk, May 12,
1794
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Digital content available
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At the request of Catherine II, in May 1794 Ivan Pil, governor general of
Siberia, issued to Grigorii Shelikhov instructions concerning the settlement of
the Alaskan islands and coast with Russian families exiled in Siberia. The
order also includes ambitious instructions for the creation of a fortress and a
model town, the development of agriculture and industry, the education and
conversion of the Native Americans, and the cultivation of ties with Japan and
the inhabitants of the Kuril Islands. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Inscriptions on monument to Shelikhov,
undated
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Inscriptions on the monument erected in memory
of Grigorii Shelikhov in Rylsk by G. Derzhavin. with copies, 1795
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This document includes various drafts for an inscription for Shelikhov's tomb.
The third version was composed by the Russian court poet Gavriil Derzhavin. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Lapatin to Shelikhov, 1792, Oct. 24-1795,
July 6
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Oct. 24, 1792 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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This and the following letters from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov cover the years
1792 to 1795. They concern the fur trade, shipments of supplies, and financial
transactions in Siberia. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Nov. 3, 1792 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Nov. 22, 1792 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Mar. 20, 1793 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Jan. 18, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Feb. 12, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Mar. 5, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Mar. 19, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, May 5, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, June 10, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, June 16, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, June 20, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Sept. 9, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Sept. 20, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Nov. 17, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Dec. 15, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Dec. 20, 1794 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Mar. 5, 1795 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Mar. 12, 1795 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, Apr. 20, 1795 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, June 20, 1795 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Letter from Matvei Lapatin to Shelikhov.
Irkutsk, July 6, 1795 (Letters from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii
Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Statement of Rezanov on first settlement of
Russians in America, 1741
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Statement by Nikolai Rezanov concerning first
settlement of Russians in America in 1741, circa 1790 (Letters
from Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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This statement declares that in 1741 Russian explorers not only discovered
North America but also established a colony, thus preceding the British and
Spanish claims to the same territory by some thirty to forty years. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Credentials issued to Rezanov, 1803, June
30
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Credentials issued to Nikolai Rezanov by
Russian-American Company, June 30, 1803 (Letters from Matvei
Lapatin to Grigorii Shelikhov. Irkuts) |
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Digital content available
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These credentials authorized Rezanov, in the name of the Russian-American
Company, to establish trade in any territory of the Asian, Indian, or American
continents and to open credit with any commercial house. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Convention with Japan, 1804
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Memo for a possible future convention with
Japan. English summary with Russian autograph, 1804 (Letters from
Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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Written in Rezanov's own hand, this memorandum outlines a proposed
Russo-Japanese agreement that would enable Russians to establish a fortified
port on Matmai (Hokkaido), or, failing that, unrestricted trade between the two
nations. Japanese items of interest to the Russians were rice, tea, ink, seeds,
silk, cotton, and manufactured goods. In return the Russians offered whale oil,
furs, walrus tusks, iron tools, optical instruments, linen, and wool. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
List of Rezanov’s papers, undated
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
List of papers of the deceased Full Chamberlain
Nikolai P. Rezanov, selected by Titov, after 1807 (Letters from
Matvei Lapatin to Grigorii Shelikhov. Irkutsk) |
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Digital content available
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This list of Rezanov's personal papers compiled after his untimely death in
1807 reveals his breadth of culture and status as ambassador to Japan. Included
are notebooks on the geography of Siberia; lexicons of the Japanese, Kuril, and
native Alaskan languages; and diplomatic letters. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Rezanov’s secret instructions for Baranov,
1806, July 20
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
A copy of secret instructions by
Nikolai Rezanov for Alexander Baranov (left before Rezanov left America).
Novoarkhangel'sk, July 20, 1807
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In July 1806, shortly before his premature death, Nikolai Rezanov composed a
set of secret instructions for Baranov. Dividing his testament into
observations on the present state of the colony and advice for the future,
Rezanov recommended improvements in ship building and the training of crews,
the establishment of an agricultural colony in New Albion (Northern
California), the creation of a permanent Russian population, the introduction
of a regional currency, and the erection of schools and medical facilities. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Report to Alexander I, 1806
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Report to Alexander I by Rezanov with list of 34
men who want to remain in America, 1806, Feb. 15, AHD v. 3,
186-188 |
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In this report to the emperor, Rezanov proposes the creation of a "Tribunal of
Hunters and Americans" to settle disputes between Russian fur traders and
native Alaskans in an orderly manner. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Extract from logbook of the ship Yunona, 1806
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Extract from Logbook of the ship Yunona during voyage from Novoarkhangel'sk to
California and back. California. Signed by Lt. Khvostov, from Jan. 24,
1806 to June 9, 1806
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In 1806 Rezanov sailed with the Iunona [Juno] from
Novoarkhangel'sk to Northern California in search of arable land to supply food
for the Russian colony. The logbook kept by Lieutenant Khvostov records the
historic meeting between Rezanov and the leaders of the Spanish presidio in San
Francisco and the exploratory mission by the Russians to establish a fort at
Bodega Bay. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Rezanov’s reports to the tsar, circa 1799,
1805,
1806
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Report to Alexander I by Nikolai Rezanov,
June 9, 1805 (Reports to The Tsar by Nikolai
Rezanov) |
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Digital content available
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This report documents the abuse that Rezanov suffered at the hands of the crew
of the Neva on his voyage from St. Petersburg to Kamchatka in 1805. Jealous of
his status as ambassador of the emperor and plenipotentiary representative of
the Russian-American Company, the ship's officers threatened to kill Rezanov,
who remained in his cabin for most of the trip. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Report to Pavel I [by Nikolai Rezanov].
Unsigned, Nov. 1, 1799 (Reports to The Tsar by Nikolai
Rezanov) |
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This report discusses in detail the merger between the company of Shelikhov and
Golikov and that of Mylnikov in 1797, which preceded the creation of the
Russian-American Company in 1799. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Report to Alexander I by Nikolai Rezanov. Port
of Novoarkhangel'sk, June 17, 1806 (Reports to The Tsar by
Nikolai Rezanov) |
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In this document Rezanov briefly reports to the emperor about his successful
trip to Northern California and the prospects for further trade with the
Spanish. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Secret instruction by Nikolai Rezanov for
Alexander Baranov (extract of copy of secret instructions by Nikolai Rezanov
for Alexander Baranov), July 20, 1807 (Reports to The Tsar by
Nikolai Rezanov) |
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Digital content available
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See A copy of secret
instructions by Nikolai Rezanov for Alexander Baranov
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Instructions to the police probably in the city
of Irkutsk [does not relate to Russian-American Company], undated
(Reports to The Tsar by Nikolai Rezanov) |
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Digital content available
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BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Russian-American Co. reports to Alexander I,
1800,
1804,
1810
|
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
English Summary of Report of the
Russian-American Company to Alexander I, 1810, Sept. 22, AHD v. 3,
201 (Reports to Alexander I by the Board of Directors of the Russian-American
Company) |
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Digital content available
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For Russian text, see Draft of report to Alexander
I. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Report to Alexander I from Petropavlovks,
[Aug. 17, 1804] (Reports to Alexander I by the Board of
Directors of the Russian-American Company) |
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On this occasion Rezanov reported that on his voyage through the Pacific his
ship picked up a Frenchman who had been living in the Marquesas Islands. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Draft of report to Alexander I,
[1800] (Reports to Alexander I by the Board of Directors of the
Russian-American Company) |
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Digital content available
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This draft records the fate of various ships, their crew, and cargo under the
direction of the Russian-American Company between 1799 and 1801. |
BOX 1 REEL 1 |
Report of Board of Directors of the Russian
American Co. to Alexander I, 1810, Sept. 22, AHD v. 3, 201
(Reports to Alexander I by the Board of Directors of the Russian-American
Company) |
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Digital content available
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This report mentions the arrival in Kamchatka of the Neva, which had sailed
from St. Petersburg via the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans under the command
of Ludwig (Leontii) Hagemeister, as well as the fate of some other vessels
belonging to the company. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letters to Rezanov, 1803
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
A Poem Dedicated to Rezanov prior to his voyage
around the world, 1803 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai
Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
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Digital content available
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Written in a formal high style, this unsigned eulogy exalts Rezanov, as well as
the rulers Peter I, Catherine II, and Alexander I as the patrons of Russian
expansion in the Pacific. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter for Secretary of Academia Nicolas Fuks.
St. Petersburg. In French, June 28, 1803 (Copies of correspondence
to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
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Digital content available
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Written in French, this letter from the Secretary of the Russian Academy of
Sciences, Nicolas Fuchs, wishes Rezanov success in his voyage to Alaska and
expresses the hope that it will provide the academy with further knowledge of
the region. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
"Another letter in French" (Copies
of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
|
Digital content available
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BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter of Praise from Nicolas Fuchs to Rezanov
1803, May 12 AHD, v. 3, 205-06. (Copies of correspondence to
Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
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Digital content available
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This letter, which accompanied a portrait of General Suvorov, compares Rezanov
to Columbus and bids him to proclaim the greatness of Russia in new lands. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter [to Nikolai Rezanov] from Privy Councilor
Stephan Ionovich Zakharov, Apr. 20, 1803 (Copies of correspondence
to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
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Digital content available
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The author of this letter compared Rezanov to da Gama, Columbus, Vespucci, and
Albuquerque and enclosed his poem "Praise to Catherine the Great." |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter of A.. F. Bestuzhev to Rezanov,
1803, May 25, AHD, v. 3, 206 (Copies of correspondence to
Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
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Digital content available
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This letter accompanied an issue of The St. Petersburg Journal with the request that it be donated to an educational institution in
Russian America. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report by Stephan Zhakarov, 1810
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report from Stephan Ionovich
Zhakarov commissioner at Ekaterinburg to the Russian-American Company at
Irkutsk, Mar. 18, 1810 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai
Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
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Digital content available
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This report describes the difficult traveling conditions during springtime in
Siberia and the costs of transport. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Request for government aid; troubles with Japan,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report to Board of Directors of Russian-American
Company summarizing relations between Russia and Japan from 1792 to 1812.
Probably 1812. AHD v. 3, 208-209. (Copies of correspondence to
Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
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Digital content available
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Beginning with the intentions of Catherine II to promote diplomatic and trade
relations with Japan, this report to the board of directors of the
Russian-American Company summarizes the main episodes in relations between
Russia and Japan from 1792 to 1812. In particular it is concerned with the
failure of Rezanov to force a trade agreement with Japan in 1804-1807, the
punitive missions of Nikolai Khvostov and Gavriil Davydov against the Japanese
settlements on Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands in 1807, and the on-going efforts
to rescue the Russian naval officer Vasilii Golovnin, who was captured by the
Japanese in 1811. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Imperial loans, undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Memorandum of the Russian-American Company
concerning Imperial loans for trip around the world, [1803]
(Copies of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip
around the world) |
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Digital content available
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This memorandum requests the protection of the Russian emperor as Sovereign
Protector of the Company against a creditor demanding repayment of a loan. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report from ship Kutuzov, 1817, Apr. 18-30
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report to the Rus.-Am. Co. from Captain L.
Hagemeister, commander of the Kutuzov 1817, Apr. 18, followed by
accounts drawn up during Hagemeister's stay in Calla, AHD, v. 3, 211. (Copies
of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
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Digital content available
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On his second voyage around the world, Leontii Hagemeister landed at the port
of Callao (Peru), where he tried to sell a load of iron to the local Spanish
merchants and obtain fresh water and sugar. Although he was unsuccessful in the
sale, in this report to the Russian-American Company, Hagemeister notes that
the Spanish viceroy approved of the Russian colony of Fort Ross in Northern
California as a means of strengthening Russo-Spanish ties and discouraging
British and American expansion along the Pacific coast. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Instructions to Russian-American ship commanders,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Instructions to commanders of ships of the
Russian-American Company, undated (Copies of correspondence to
Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
Digital content available
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This instruction includes various regulations concerning the taking of
inventory, book-keeping, cargo reports, etc., to be observed by commanders of
Russian-American Company ships. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Fuks to Rezanov, 1903, Apr. 21
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter from Nicolas Fuks to Nikolai Rezanov.
St.Petersburg, Apr. 21, 1803 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai
Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
Digital content available
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This is a copy of "Another letter in
French". |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
School receipt of Peter Rezanov, 1813
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Receipt for schooling of Petr Nikolaevich
Rezanov at St.Petersburg. Provincial gymnasia. Signed by Liudendorf,
1813 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his
departure for trip around the world) |
|
Digital content available
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Little is known about the fate of Rezanov's son Petr (born in 1801), aside from
documents such as this. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Rezanov to Count Yurii Alexandrovich, 1806,
Nov. 5
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter from Nikolai Rezanov to Count Iurii
Alexandrovich Neledinskii-Meletskii. Iakutsk, Nov. 5, 1806 (Copies
of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
|
Digital content available
|
|
In this draft of a letter to Count Neledinskii-Meletskii, who had just been
appointed to supervise Russian trade with China, Rezanov reports on his arrival
in Siberia following his stay in Alaska. He also writes of his trip to Northern
California and the importance of establishing a permanent Russian presence
there. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Russian-American Co. report, 1798-1802
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report on conditions in the Russian-American
Company, 1804, AHD, v. 3, 215-221. (Copies of correspondence to
Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
Digital content available
|
|
This report compiled by Ivan Osipovich Novitsky records in detail many of the
financial transactions of the Russian-American Company between 1798 and 1802.
It also makes accusations of corrupt business practices, such as the extension
of credit without receipts to Native Americans. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
A. L. Lorenzo to Russian-American Co., 1816,
Aug. 2
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Russian translation of a Spanish letter from A.
L. Lawrence to the Board of Directors of the Russian-American Company, Cadiz,
1816, Aug. 2. AHD v. 3, 222. (Copies of correspondence to
Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
Digital content available
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|
This letter informs the company that the Suvorov
was loaded with a shipment of quinine and red copper prior to its journey
across the South Seas. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Alexander I to Rezanov, 1905, Apr. 28
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Copy of letter by Alexander I to Nikolai
Rezanov, Apr. 28, 1805 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai
Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
Digital content available
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|
In this letter, Alexander I expresses the hope that the Rezanov's embassy to
Japan was successful and reaffirms his wish that Rezanov travel to Russian
America in order to reorganize the colony. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report on conversion tables for weights and
measures, 1814
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report concerning conversion tables for Russian
and foreign weights and measures, Mar. 1814 (Copies of
correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
|
Digital content available
|
|
This draft of a letter, probably from the board of directors of the
Russian-American Company to the ministry of Commerce, commends the comparative
tables of weights and measures prepared by a bookkeeper in the department of
Foreign Trade. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Siberian objects sent to Moscow University,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Register of objects sent to Moscow University
from Eastern Siberia and the Pacific (after 1806). (Copies of
correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
|
Digital content available
|
|
The objects appearing on this list were most likely collected by Iurii
Lisianskii on his voyage around the world on the Neva between 1804 and 1806. It
includes a shaman's dress and drum from Iakutsk, wooden ceremonial objects from
Polynesia, taro root and a coconut from Hawaii, and a whaler's dart and air
bladder from Kodiak Island. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Treaty between Alexander I and Ferdinand VII of
Spain, 1812, Nov. 11
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Treaty beween Alexander I and Ferdinand VII of
Spain. In Russian and French, Nov. 11, 1812 (Copies of
correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
|
Digital content available
|
|
The treaty concluded on July 20, 1812 at Velikie Luki declared a permanent
alliance between Spain and Russia and called for a common struggle against the
emperor of the French (Napoleon) in case of war. It also sanctioned the
restoration and promotion of trade between Russia and Spain. This treaty,
however, would also hinder the efforts by the Russian-American Company to
establish a permanent colony at Fort Ross in Spanish-held Northern California
and complicate relations between the Russian governors of Alaska and the soon
to be independent government of Mexico. |
BOX 2 REEL 2 |
Russian-American Co. to Lieutenant Kruzenstern,
1805, Apr. 29
|
BOX 2 REEL 2 |
Copy of letter from the Russian-American Company
to Lt. Kruzenstern. St. Petersburg. Apr. 29, 1805 (Copies of
correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
|
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Ivan Kruzenstern was commander of the Nadezhda,
which traveled around the world in 1803-1806, carrying Nikolai Rezanov on his
mission to Japan. In this letter the board of directors of the Russian-American
Company acknowledges receipt of Kruznenshtern's report of August 20, 1804 about
the disagreements that occurred during the voyage. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
List of papers, compiled by Rezanov (?),
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
"List of papers which are of some interest;"
probably compiled by Nikolai Rezanov circa 1800 (Copies of
correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
|
Digital content available
|
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This list of personal papers offers an insight into the varied interests of
Rezanov. It includes studies of minerals, chemistry, botany, geography,
political science, and international commerce. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
List of persons in Rezanov’s brigade,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
List of persons rewarded with orders, titles,
ranks, & lands, probably compiled by Rezanov, circa 1800
(Copies of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip
around the world) |
|
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|
This list forms a social register of Rezanov's peers in Russian society. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Description of Vodyanoi Ostrov,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Description of Vodianoi ostrov [Water Island],
circa 1800 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before
his departure for trip around the world) |
|
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|
|
Vodianoi ostrov was supposedly discovered in 1771 off the coast of Kamchatka,
by Count Mauritius Augustus Benyovsky (1746-1786) a Hungarian-born Polish
adventurer and memoirist. Exiled to Siberia by Catherine II, Benyovsky led a
mutiny in Kamchatka and made his way to Madagascar via the Kuril Islands,
Japan, and Macao. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Description of an island near Svyatyi Mys,
1807, Nov. 11
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Description of an island near Svyatyi Mys [Holy
Cape], Nov. 11, 1807 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov
before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
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This is an extract of a description of Sviatoi Mys [Holy Cape] and islands in
the vicinity as well as an account of hunting expeditions in the region. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Contraband activities in Siberia and North America,
circa 1812
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Memorandum about contraband activities in
Siberia and North America, [1812] (Copies of
correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the
world) |
|
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|
This is a rather harsh assessment of the activities of the sea captain and
trader William Pigot who became involved in the fur trade in the Pacific
between 1812 and 1820. As a British-born American, Pigot had trouble selling
his furs in the closed ports of Russia and China. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Reports of the Kamchatka commissioner,
1822
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Excerpts from the reports of the Kamchatsk
commissioner Nikolaev, 1822 (Copies of correspondence to
Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
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|
In his reports, Nikolaev, the local commissioner for the Russian-American
Company, airs his grievances against the governor of Kamchatka, Petr Ivanovich
Rikord, who was in favor of cultivating trade with foreign countries, including
Japan. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Complaints of Unalaska natives,
1789-1790
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Complaints of the natives of Unalaska District,
1790 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov
before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
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|
Despite the intentions of Grigorii Shelikhov to create favorable relations
between the Russian promyshlenniki and the native population of the Aleutian
Islands, many of his fellow colonists became known for their brutality and
coercive methods. In the "Complaints of the Natives of the Unalaska District"
compiled between 1789 and 1790 for Russian government inspectors, we find a
vivid depiction of the forced labor, severe punishments, starvation, seizure of
women, and plunder to which the Aleut people were subjected. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of Kamchatka, 1794-1795
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Memorandum by Voevodskii on conditions in
Kamchatka; list of goods with prices, from 1795
(Copies of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip
around the world) |
|
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|
Voevodskii was the town bailiff of Nizhe-Kamchatka. In 1794-1795 he prepared
this report on agricultural conditions in Kamchatka, where Russian peasants had
been settled since about 1740. He notes that further encouragement of the local
cultivation of grain and the salt industry would result in substantial savings
for the government. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Ukase of the ruling senate, 1788, and reply
of the Russian-American Co. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Order of the Ruling Senate, #48, issued to
Shelikhov and Golikov, 1788, Sept. 11, and their response,
1788, Sept. 11, AHD v. 3, 243-44. (Copies of correspondence to
Nikolai Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
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The first of these documents reflects Catherine II's determination to prevent a
monopoly of the fur trade from being formed by Shelikhov and Golikov, as well
as her refusal to grant a loan of 200,000 rubles and a company of 100 soldiers
to their company. At the same time, Catherine shows her admiration for the
merchants by her gifts of swords and medals bearing her image, and warns them
not to enter into conflicts with the Chinese or other foreign powers. In the
second document, Shelikhov and Golikov inform the Senate that they are in
compliance with the orders of the government not to collect taxes from natives
of the Aleutian islands. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Remarks on criminals, circa 1809
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Remarks on criminals: Naplavkov, Popov and their
accomplices, [1809] (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai
Rezanov before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
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|
In 1809 a group of discontented colonists, led by an exiled convict, Vasilii
Naplakov, and the son of a convict, Ivan Popov, formed a secret society in
Novoarkhangel'sk with the intention of assassinating the governor, Alexander
Baranov, seizing a ship, and taking all the women of the colony to the South
Sea Islands to a create a republic of their own. Upon learning of the plot,
Baranov proceeded to investigate the affair and sent five of the most guilty to
Kamchatka for prosecution. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report on an expedition of Colonel Kozlov-Ugrenin,
1788-1789
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report on an expedition of Col. Kozlov-Ugrenin,
1789 (Copies of correspondence to Nikolai Rezanov
before his departure for trip around the world) |
|
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|
This unsigned report of an agent of the Russian-American Company in Kamchatka
describes the oppression of the native population by the military leader of an
expedition there, Col Kozlov-Ugrenin in 1788-1789. The accuracy of this account
has been questioned, as Kozlov-Ugrenin was known for his interest in the
welfare of the Aleut people. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Reports from St. Catherine’s Island,
1803-1804
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Draft of report of Fedor Shemelin to Board of
Directors of the Russian-American Company concerning behavior of naval officers
toward Rezanov on his voyage of 1803, AHD v. 3, 247-8 (Reports by
Fedor I. Shemelin from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
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|
In his account of the voyage of the Nadezhda from St. Petersburg to Kamchatka
in 1803, Shemelin, an employee of the Russian-American Company describes the
persecution he and Rezanov suffered at the hands of the naval officers on
board, especially Count Fedor Ivanovich Tolstoi. In addition, he accuses them
of disloyalty to the government, atheism, and debauchery. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Copy of report of Shemelin to the Board of
Directors of the Russian-American Company from the Island of Santa Catharina,
1803, Dec. 26, AHD v. 3, 248 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from
St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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After crossing the South Atlantic, the Neva (the
ship accompanying the Nadezhda) was found to be in
need of repairs before it could continue into the Pacific. On this occasion
Shemelin reported on the wasteful habits of the crew while in the port of Santa
Catharina and the amounts spent on sugar, vodka, and brandy. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Copy of order from Shemelin to Nikolai
Korobitsyn, 1803, Dec. 15, AHD v. 3, 249 with copy of Korobitsyn's
reply to Shemelin, 1803, Dec. 16, AHD v. 3, 249 (Reports by Fedor
I. Shemelin from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
In this order Shemelin requested that Korobitsyn, who was sailing on the Neva, forward his expense reports to the Company. In
his reply, Korobitsyn rejects Shemelin's right to give him orders. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of Shmelin to the Board of Directors of
the Russian-American Company from the Island of Santa Catharina, 1804,
Jan. 8, AHD v. 3, 249 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St.
Catherine's Island) |
|
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Shemelin reports that the new masts are ready for the Neva and that the ship will soon be sailing. He also reports that in
order to save the stock of French brandy for trading purposes, he is going to
supply the crew with local rum. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Register of bills for expenses in Copenhagen,
Falmouth, and Santa Cruz, Sept. 1803 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin
from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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This list includes bills for food and drink for the crew, and repairs for
nautical instruments. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report on conversation between Shelikhov and an
English traveler, undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of a conversation between Grigorii
Shelikhov and an English traveler, John Ledyard, probably incomplete,
circa 1778, AHD v. 3, 250 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from
St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
Having joined Captain James Cook's third and final expedition around the world
in 1776, John Ledyard (1751-1789) was eager to determine the possibilities of
establishing a fur trade between the Northwest coast of America, China, and New
England. Convinced of the importance of Russia in such trade, Ledyard took an
interest in the activities of the traders whom he met at Unalaska in October
1778. Later he attempted to cross Russian and Siberia en route to the Pacific,
but was arrested on unsubstantiated charges in Iakutsk and deported from Russia
at the Polish border. In these notes, probably made after meeting Ledyard in
Irkutsk in 1788, Grigorii Shelikhov admits that he sought to convince Ledyard
of the extent of the Russian settlement of America, claiming, for example, that
all the native people from Alaska to California had become Russian
subjects. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Russian-American Co. to Moritz Berkh, 1812,
July 8
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Copy of letter from the Russian-American Company
To Lt. Moritz Berkh. Krondshtadt. Ship "Neva", July 8, 1812
(Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
This letter informs Lieutenant Berkh that his ship is seaworthy for a trip
around the world and that he is to select his crew as soon as possible for a
departure in August. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report to Rezanov from Peter Filipov, 1806,
Feb. 13
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report to Nikolai Rezanov from Petr Filipov,
Port Novo-Arkhangel'sk, Feb. 13, 1806 (Reports by Fedor I.
Shemelin from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
Petr Filipov reports to Rezanov that during his stay on Sitka he has collected
and stuffed about sixty sea and land birds. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Contract for service, Lieutenant Fedor von Romberg,
1802, Oct. 26
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Contract for service in North America between
Lt. Fedor von Romberg and the Russian-American Company, 1802, Oct.
26, AHD, v. 3, 252 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St.
Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
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|
Von Romberg was an assistant to Captain Kruzenshtern. In this letter to the
board of directors of the Russian-American Company he sets forth conditions he
would like added to his contract with the company. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of the Russian-American Co.,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Memorandum of the Russian-American Company,
circa 1806, AHD v. 3, 252 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from
St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
This memorandum provides a description of what constitutes a share in the
Russian-American Company. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Inventory of the Russian-American Co., circa
1815
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Inventory of the Russian-American Company,
circa 1815 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St. Catherine's
Island) |
|
Digital content available
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|
This simple undated inventory lists the main territories, buildings,
population, and capital under the control of the Russian-American Company about
1815. In the list are mentioned two churches, and the settlements at Kodiak
Island, Novoarkhangel'sk, and Fort Ross (in California). There is also mention
of an island to be purchased from the king of Hawaii. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Cover to “Package for the Moscow Secret Service,”
1806, Apr. 20
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter from Petr Golovachev to Fedor Shemelin,
Apr., 1806, AHD, v. 3, 256 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from
St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
On April 25, 1806 Petr Golovachev committed suicide while serving aboard the
Nadezhda. Prior to his death, Golovachev composed this letter and entrusted
Shemelin with a package of personal papers to be handed to Rezanov and his
relatives in Russia. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report from Baranov, 1803, Feb. 15
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Copy of Instructions from Alexander Baranov,
Manager of the Kodiak Company, to Hunters, 1803, Feb. 15, AHD, v.
3, 254-55 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St. Catherine's
Island) |
|
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In these instructions Baranov appeals to the Russian fur hunters in Alaska not
to abandon their service to the company following the disastrous Kolosh
uprising and the loss of men and furs at sea during the previous year. To those
men who were willing to remain in service, Baranov held out the possibility of
new conditions in their contracts that would permit them to becoming
shareholders in the company. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Imperial ukase concerning articles forbidden for
importation, 1793
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Imperial decree concerning articles forbidden
for importation [printed], Apr. 8, 1793 (Reports by Fedor I.
Shemelin from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
Following the French Revolution, Catherine II decided to forbid the importation
of all sorts of manufactured and agricultural goods from France until such time
as the monarchy and social order were restored. Among the forbidden items were
shoes, wines, beads, buttons, clocks, silk clothes, paper products,
snuff-boxes, etc. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
“St. Petersburg Current Prices, No. 76,”
1811
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
St. Petersburg current prices (or
preis-kurant), Feb. 29, 1811 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from
St. Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
|
|
The "St. Petersburg Current Prices" published by the department of trade of the
ministry of finance listed the prices of Russian raw goods, quotations on
foreign goods, and the exchange rate for rubles. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report to tsar from Kozima, 1805
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter from Kozma Ermolinskii to Rezanov,
1805, July 25, AHD v. 3, 257 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from
St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
In his letter, written at Nizhe-Kamchatka, Lieutenant Ermolinskii complains
bitterly of the persecution he suffered at the hands of Major General
Koshelev. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
General Okhlesteshev, 1815
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Note concerning General Okhlestiakov,
1815, May 26, AHD, v. 3, 257 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from
St. Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
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|
This brief notes the promotion of Mikhail Okhlestiakov to the rank of colonel
in the Preobrazhenskii regiment. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Travel journal of Peter Korsakovsky,
1818
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Travel journal of Petr Korsakovskii, Sept.
10, 1818 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St. Catherine's
Island) |
|
Digital content available
|
|
In 1818 Petr Grigor'evich Korsakovskii (1799-1831) was given permission to
explore the interior of Alaska in search of gold and the descendants of a crew
of Russian men who had reportedly been stranded in Alaska in the seventeenth
century. In this extract of his journal, Korsakovskii describes the hunting and
weather conditions during September 1818 as well as the places and names of
chiefs he encountered. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Cargo list for the Beznocimov, 1804
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Cargo list by Beznosikov from an expedition to
western provinces in China, 1804 (Reports by Fedor I.
Shemelin from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of the Orlovsk government,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of the Governor of Orlov chamber
concerning land given to Osip Kozodavlev, undated (Reports by
Fedor I. Shemelin from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Note in English signed by John Main,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Note in English by John Main on the proper form
of address for the Reverend William Coxe of Cambridge, undated
(Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St. Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
John Main served as assistant to Dr. Carl Heinrich Merck during the overland
expedition of Joseph Billings to Siberia in 1786. William Coxe (1747-1828) was
an English traveler, historian, and clergyman. In 1778 and in 1785-86 Coxe
traveled in Russia where he took an interest in the Russian exploration of the
Pacific and America. In 1780 he published his Account of the Russian
Discoveries between Asia and America and in 1787, A Comparative View of the
Russian Discoveries with those made by Captain Cook and Clerke. Shelikhov's
note in Russian at the bottom reads, "Make a copy and send it to Demidov.
December 13." |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Russian translations of Vancouver’s travels,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Excerpts of Russian translation of Vancouver's
travels, undated (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St.
Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
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|
George Vancouver (1757-1798) accompanied James Cook on his second and third
voyages, and commanded an expedition of his own to the North Pacific between
1790 and 1794. This extract from volume three of his journal, A Voyage of
Discovery to the North Pacific Ocean and Round the World in the Years
1790-1795, records Vancouver's impressions of Russian rule in America. |
REEL 2 REEL 1 |
Map of St. Petersburg area, undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Map of St.Petersburg area of Russia drawn by
N.B., undated (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St.
Catherine's Island) |
|
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|
This map covers the northwestern part of European Russian. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of Captain Vailev, 1821
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of Captain Vasil'ev concerning ship
movements, June 24, 1821 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St.
Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
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|
Captain Ivan Iakovlevich Vasil'ev (1797-1838?) was a navigator and explorer in
the service of the Russian-American Company. This memorandum records his
meeting with V. S. Kramchenko who reported his discovery of a low, wooded
island. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Siberian expenses, 1823, Nov. 8
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Projected changes for reducing expenses in
Siberia, Nov. 8, 1823 (Reports by Fedor I. Shemelin from St.
Catherine's Island) |
|
Digital content available
|
|
By 1823 the income made by the Russian-American Company was insufficient to
support its various offices in Russia, Siberia, and America. Inspired, perhaps,
by the recommendations of Rezanov, (see A copy of secret
instructions by Nikolai Rezanov for Alexander Baranov), the author of
this paper called for the reduction of company business and personnel in
Irkutsk, Kiakhta, Okhotsk, and Iakutsk. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Petition from Yakut merchant, 1797,
Nov.
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Petition from a Yakut merchant Fedor Struchkov
to the governor of Irkutsk Company, Nov. 2,
1797
|
|
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|
|
Writing in a single sentence, the author of this petition, Fedor Struchkov,
proposed to organize a fur trading company that would hunt and explore around
the Shantar Islands and the mouth of the Amur River. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
List of products, undated
|
|
Digital content available
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Tribes of the Irkutsk region, undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Tribes in the Irkutsk region |
|
Digital content available
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Death and burial of Admiral von Kruz,
1799
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report of the death and burial of Admiral
Aleksandr Ivanovich von Kruz, [1799]
|
|
Digital content available
|
|
Kruz lived from 1731 to 1799. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report concerning Thomas Vernon and Co.,
1803
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Request of Thomas Vernon and Co. concerning the
Portugese ship Pensamento Felix, 1803, July
2, AHD, v. 3, 266 |
|
Digital content available
|
|
This is a Russian copy of the request by the company of Thomas Vernon to the
Russian minister of commerce to sequester in the port of Kronstadt the
Portugese ship Pensamento Felix for nonpayment of
bills to the company. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Notes concerning Guznishevskii, 1808
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Note concerning prikazchik Guznishchevskii,
Kamchatka, 1808, Sept. 16, AHD, v. 3, 266 |
|
Digital content available
|
|
Guznishchevskii was involved in a case of misuse of company funds at the
Kamchatka office of the Russian-American Company. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Shares of the Russian-American Co.,
undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Memorandum concerning shares of the
Russian-American Company |
|
Digital content available
|
|
This memorandum petitions the board of directors of the company to guarantee
that shares in the company be universally accepted in government contracts as
security deposits. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
List of merchants to take part in the Tsar’s
Commerce College, undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
List of merchants appointed by the Emperor to
take part in conferences at the ministry of commerce, undated
|
|
Digital content available
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report from Okhotsk station concerning Japanese
troubles, 1811
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Report from the Okhotsk station concerning
trouble with the Japanese, Nov. 8,
1811
|
|
Digital content available
|
|
In August 1811 Lieutenant Captain Vasilii Mikhailovich Golovnin (1776-1831) was
captured by the Japanese while he and his crew were making a survey of the
central and southern Kuril Islands. In retaliation for the raids made by
Khvostov and Davydov on Sakhalin (see Report from Stephan Ionovich
Zhakarov), Golovnin was kept on Hokkaido (called here Matmai) until
1813. This memorandum recommends that in view of the difficulties with Japan,
the next expedition to Sakhalin be diverted to Alaska in the following
spring. |
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Surgeon of the 27th Artillery Brigade at Rovno
(Poland?), in German, undated
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Letter from surgeon of the 27th artillery
brigade at Rovno [Rowno, Poland ?] in German, May
28, 1817
|
|
Digital content available
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Contract with N. V. Borisov, 1804, May
7
|
BOX 2 REEL 1 |
Contract with Nikita V. Borisov, 1804, May
7, AHD, v. 3, 269 |
|
Digital content available
|
|
This contract contains five clauses defining the typical duties of an employee
of the Russian-American Company, including unconditional service wherever he
might be sent. The salary was set at 500 rubles per year. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Achievements of the Russian-American Co.,
undated
|
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Report of the achivements of the
Russian-American Company with draft,
undated
|
|
Digital content available
|
|
Although this document is undated and unsigned it has been attributed to
Mikhail Buldakov (1766-1827?), the first director of the Russian-American
Company, who vigorously defends the achievements of the company over a
thirty-year period. He mentions not only the company's financial integrity but
also its role in expanding the territory and influence of the Russian empire
and the conversion of native peoples to Christianity. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Journal of hunting party, Shantar Islands,
1786, June 5-July 30
|
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Journal of Lebedev-Lastochkin's hunting party to
the Shantar Islands, June-July 1786, AHD, v. 3, 270 |
|
Digital content available
|
|
Pavel Sergeevich Lebedev-Lastochkin (d. 1800) was a onetime partner and then
rival of Grigorii Shelikhov. Although he would later turn his attention to the
Aleutian Islands and the coast of Alaska, until the 1780s Lebedev-Lastochkin
attempted several trading and hunting expeditions to the Kuril and Shantar
Islands. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Note concerning suit of the Russian-American
Company against the Lastochkin Company, after 1814, AHD, v. 3,
270 |
|
Digital content available
|
|
Following the death of Shelikhov in 1795, the rivalry between the various fur
trading companies in Russian America escalated into violent confrontations
among different factions, including the native Americans who had been severely
exploited by all parties. Although the creation of the Russian-American Company
in 1799 consolidated most of the companies, Lebedev-Lastochkin refused to join.
Claims between the two companies continued even after Lastochkin's death in
1800. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Irkutsk region, 1798
|
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Memorandum about Irkutsk region. With draft
about food and prices, 1798
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This memorandum, with corrections attributed to Nikolai Rezanov, discusses the
questions relating to the cultivation of agriculture in the region around
Irkutsk. As a remedy to the problem of rising prices of foodstuffs, the author
proposes the elimination of taxes, promotion of free trade, permission for
farmers to travel freely to market towns, etc. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
List of charts from Pilot Izmailov, circa
1795
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
List of charts delivered from Pilot Izmailov
from America, 1795, AHD, v. 3, 273; followed by an order from
Natal'ia Shelikhova for maps of the Russian American colonies, after 1795, AHD,
v. 3, 274-5 |
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Gerasim Izmailov (1745-1795) was a talented seafarer and explorer who
participated in numerous expeditions to Kamchatka and the Aleutian Islands. In
October 1778 he encountered Captain Cook off the coast of Unalaska and provide
him with valuable nautical and geographical information about the North
Pacific. In the 1780s Izmailov's reputation was compromised by his extreme use
of force during the Russian occupation of Kodiak Island. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Letter from Ivan Bukharin regarding Okhotsk Port,
1806, Oct.
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Letter from Ivan Bukharin to [Nikolai Rezanov]
regarding Okhotsk Port, Oct. 1,
1806
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In reply to questions of Rezanov, here referred to only as Your Excellency, the
commander of the port of Okhotsk, Ivan Bukharin, wrote a brief history of the
settlement and the origins of the first expeditions to the Kuril and Aleutian
Islands, followed by an account of present-day operations at the port and
various statistics concerning the Russian personnel stationed there. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Note regarding Ivan Bukharin's deeds, [1805]
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The memorandum attached to the above letter accuses Bukharin of all sorts of
improprieties, such as bribery, the whipping of a noblemen and a local chief,
and the transport of luxury goods for his own use at government expense. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Unidentified notes, abstract of Russian-French
peace agreements, 1807, July 9
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Undated and unidentified notes concerning
operations of the Russian-American Company, followed by an abstract of the
peace treaty between France and Prussia made in July, 1807, AHD,
v. 3, 280 |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Animals brought from Lima, Peru,
undated
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Animals brought from Lima, Peru. With draft,
from 1815
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Mentioned are llamas, vicuñas, and tortoises. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Trading rules received in Peking, China, by
Shchegorin, undated
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
List of trading regulations received in Peking
by Fedor Shchegorin, 1794, AHD, v. 3, 281 |
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Ivan Shchegorin was a citizen of Irkutsk who resided in Peking between 1781 and
1794 with the Russian religious mission. These regulations, which Shchegorin
received from his colleague in Kiakhta on the Russo-Chinese border, were
designed to guide Chinese merchants in their dealings with Russia. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Voyage to California, 1789
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Report about a voyage to
California. Madrid, Mar. 9,
1789
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In this letter the Russian ambassador in Madrid, Zinov'ev, reports that a
Spanish packet-boat named St. Charles encountered a Russian settlement of 462
people under the 48°-49° parallel. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Gifts to the Imperial University at Dorpat,
Estonia, 1808
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Letter in German from the rector of Dorpat
University expressing thanks for gifts to the university library and museum,
1808, Sept. 18, AHD, v. 3, 282 (Letters concerning gifts to the
Imperial University at Dorpat) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Letter in German from the rector of Dorpat
University expressing thanks for gifts to the university library and
museum,1811, Oct. 25, AHD, v. 3, 282 (Letters concerning gifts
to the Imperial University at Dorpat) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Russian translation of Report about a voyage to California, Sept. 18,
1808 (Letters concerning gifts to the Imperial University at
Dorpat) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Tables concerning taxes, gold, silver, money, etc.,
undated
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Tables concerning taxes, gold, silver, money,
etc., Oct. 3, 1797 (Letters concerning gifts to the Imperial
University at Dorpat) |
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These tables provide a summary of the history of Russian gold and silver
coinage for most of the eighteenth century, as well as rates of exchange for
Russian and foreign coinage. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Detention of a Portuguese ship, 1803
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Letter concerning the detention of the Portugese
ship Pensamento Felix, 1803, June 24, AHD v. 3, 287. (In French
with Russian translation.) (AHD v. 3 p. 287) |
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The authors of this letter, the merchants Roversi and Gonτales, protest the
detention in St. Petersburg of the ship Pensamento Felix on which their goods
are stored. This letter was most likely addressed to Rezanov (see item
#107). |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Extracts from sea regulations, undated
(AHD v. 3 p. 287) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Declaration of the Russian American Co.,
1812,
1819
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
List of orders, Nov. 29, 1812
(Declarations of the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Copy of letter of first director Mikhailo
Matveevich Buldakov from Ustiug and "An opinion", Dec. 12, 1819
(Declarations of the Russian-American Company) |
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In his letter Buldakov describes his physical condition following a
debilitating stroke and requests the board of directors of the Russian-American
Company to hold an election for a new director. In the attached opinion,
written between 1801 and 1812, Buldakov argues against the proposal of certain
shareholders that the headquarters of the board of directors be moved from St.
Petersburg to Irkutsk. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Privileges of the Russian-American Co.,
undated
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
An opinion concerning the necessity of expanding
the privileges of the Russian-American Company, (Declarations of the
Russian-American Company) |
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This opinion, which is unfinished and unsigned, recommends that in order to
improve the reputation of the Russian-American Company, it should be allowed to
incorporate imperial emblems in its documents and insignia and that its
officers be given government ranks with proper titles and uniforms. The opinion
also recommends that food rations for company employees be established along
government lines and that the company be provided with an armed ship in Russian
America. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Miscellaneous letters, 1800, undated
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Letter from Rezanov to Boris Latstsano,
1800, Oct. 25, AHD, v. 3, 292 (Miscellaneous
letters) |
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Boris Latstsano was governor general of Irkutsk. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Letter from Boris Latstsano, governor of
Irkutsk, to the board of directors of the Russian-American Company, 1800,
Aug. 27, AHD, v. 3, 292 (Miscellaneous letters) |
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This letter addresses the complaints of a citizen of Suzdal, Petr Kutyshkin,
against Golikov and Shelikhov. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Petition of Petr Kutyshkin to Alexander
I, 1800, June 29, AHD, v. 3, 292-94 (Miscellaneous
letters) |
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In his petition Kutyshkin claims that even though he was a founding member of
the Golikov-Shelikhov company he has been deprived of his rightful shares in
its profits. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
List of subscribers to Kutyshkin's company,
1779, AHD, v. 3, 294-95 (Miscellaneous letters) |
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This list of names shows the terms under which Kutyshkin and other merchants
formed a fur company with Ivan Golikov. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Letter from procurator-general of the Senate to
the governor-general of Irkutsk, Boris Latstsano, 1800, July 9,
AHD, v. 3, 295 (Miscellaneous letters) |
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This letter concerns the approval of the request by a merchant of Irkutsk to
establish a textile factory for the manufacture of sailcloth. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Documents concerning the ship Suvorov, undated
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Documents concerning the Russian-American
Company ship "Suvorov", (Miscellaneous letters) |
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These papers include bills of lading for goods delivered at Kronstadt and
newspaper accounts of the ship's progress. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Cargo list and documents concerning the operations
of the Russian-American Co., undated
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Register of goods for sale at Irkutsk,
1807, May 11 (Cargo lists and documents concerning the
operations of the Russian-American Company and China) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Register of Russian goods traded for Chinese
goods at Kiakhta in 1808, Moscow, 1809, May 27, AHD, v. 3, 298
(Cargo lists and documents concerning the operations of the Russian-American
Company and China) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
List of good delivered to St. Petersburg on the
ships Nadezhda and Neva in 1806, AHD, v. 3, 297 (Cargo lists and documents
concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company and
China) |
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The list includes the furs obtained by the Russian-American Company (sea otter,
silver fox, blue fox, bear) and goods purchased at Canton (tea, china, buttons,
pearls, fans, fabrics, baskets, trays). |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Cargo list, Sept. 1, 1804 (Cargo
lists and documents concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company
and China) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Chinese goods imported through Kiakhta in 1802,
1803, Jan. 19, AHD, v. 3, 297 (Cargo lists and documents
concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company and
China) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Cargo list, Sept. 1, 1806 (Cargo
lists and documents concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company
and China) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Chinese goods, Sept. 1, 1806 (Cargo
lists and documents concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company
and China) |
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Note regarding trade in Kiakhta, signed by
Aleksandr Borisov, Irkutsk, 1807, Jan. 15, AHD, v. 3, 298 (Cargo
lists and documents concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company
and China) |
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Probably written for Rezanov, this note emphasizes the importance of Kiakhta
for the Russian-American Company of as a place where the company could
profitably exchange furs for Chinese goods. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Note regarding trading activities of the
Russian-American Company by Aleksandr Borisov, Irkutsk, 1807, Jan.
15, AHD, v. 3, 298 (Cargo lists and documents concerning the
operations of the Russian-American Company and China) |
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In this note Borisov warns that trade in Kamchatka brings the Russian-American
Company a deficit of 20% each year. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Notes concerning company operations, 1822,
1830
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BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Diary of an expedition of Mikhailo Matveevich
Buldakov's son [parts missing?], 1822,
Aug.
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Written at various periods between 1814 and 1830, this diary of one of the sons
of Mikhail Buldakov describes army life in 1812, his travels through the
Russo-Polish border region in 1815, and his experiences as a tax collector in
Vologda province in 1822. |
BOX 3 REEL 1 |
Diary of an expedition of Mikhailo Matveevich
Buldakov's son [parts missing?], June 20,
1830
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This portion of the Buldakov diary includes details of family life and the
tedium of employment in Ustiug. |
BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Various papers concerning the operations of the
Russian-America Co., 1805-1806
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Register of goods exported from islands,
from 1803 to 1805 (Various papers concerning the operations of
the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Extract of Russian-American Company register of
goods exported from America, 1803 (Various papers concerning the
operations of the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
History of operations of the Russian-American
Company, after 1803 (Various papers concerning the operations of
the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Note about permission to convey company goods to
Gizhiga on government ships, 1805, Mar. 24 (Various papers
concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Observation concerning the board's opinion,
after 1798 (Various papers concerning the operations of the
Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Note of Resignation, after 1800
(Various papers concerning the operations of the Russian-American
Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Document concerning the Emperor's dealings with
the Russian-American Company, after 1812 (Various papers
concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
About the debts of the merchants Krupenin,
1806, Nov. 26 (Various papers concerning the operations of the
Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Note to Kodiak office from the board of the
Russian-American Company, 1803 (Various papers concerning the
operations of the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Report about general meeting of Russian-American
Company, [Feb. 28, 1803] (Various papers concerning the operations
of the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Cargo registers, 1795-1810
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Cargo list from Arkhangelsk port. Food from
foreign ports, 1810 (Various papers concerning the operations of
the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Notes about Siberia and America,
undated
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Note in English by Lydia Black describing
contents of Box 3, folder 21 (notes about Siberia and America,
1806), AHD, v. 3, 305-10 (Various papers concerning the
operations of the Russian-American Company) |
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Rezanov’s activities in California, the founding of
a colony there, Pacific trade, etc., circa 1814
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Report of the council of the Russian-American
Company to Emperor Alexander I, 1814, AHD, v. 3, 311-13 (Various
papers concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company) |
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The council of the Russian-American Company was established by imperial decree
in December 1813 to consider politically sensitive matters. Sometime after, it
drafted this report relating to the creation of the Russian colony near Bodega
Bay in Northern California (Fort Ross). In particular, the report refers to the
possibilities of cultivating grain and livestock, as well as to trade with
Spanish California, should the government in Madrid agree to it. |
BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Request to the tsar from Savinskii,
1811
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Petition from a Kamchatka official, Petr
Savinskii, to Alexander I, 1811, May 15, AHD, v. 3, 314 (Various
papers concerning the operations of the Russian-American Company) |
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In his petition, Petr Savinskii lodges a complaint against Major General
Koshelev, who unjustly arrested and imprisoned him, and requests as
compensation reinstatement and promotion. |
BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Petition from Kosmevin to the tsar,
1812
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BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Petition from a geodesist of the Imperial
Academy of Science, Ivan Kozhevin, to Alexander I, 1812, AHD, v.
3, 314-5 |
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Ivan Kozhevin was the great-grandson of the priest Ioann Kozhevin who
accompanied the Russian mission to China in 1721 and later settled in Siberia.
As a highly trained cartographer and translator of the Tungus and Yakut
languages, Ivan Kozhevin participated in expeditions to the regions of Okhotsk,
Iakutsk, and Irkutsk. In this petition he requests that he be paid a salary
still owed to him and that his great-grandfather's lands be returned to his
family. |
BOX 3 REEL 2 |
Register of Kozhevin's invoices and expenses,
1812
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Among his many services, Kozhevin lists various charts and maps that he made
for Rezanov and Count Rumiantsev. |