Administrative and Territorial Division of the Former Altai Region in 1917–1919

The Altai Region with its enormous reserves of minerals, timber, and fossil fuels played a major role in the Civil War in Russia. The article describes its administrative and territorial division after the February Revolution of 1917. The author used unpublished archival documents and newspaper publications to reconstruct the process of disintegration that the Altai economic and territorial complex underwent in 1917–1919. The historical-genetic and historical-systemic methods made it possible to describe how the forest and mining territories dwindled during the abovementioned period. Although the first division plans dated back to the autumn of 1917, the actual transfer of forestry and lease areas to the neighboring provinces began as late as in the spring of 1918 and was completed in late 1919. As a result, one third of the administrative and economic units of the former Altai Region went to the neighboring departments of agriculture and state property, and the boundaries of the Altai mining district shrank significantly. Despite the fact that the region changed hands several times during the Civil War, every new government followed the same course on reducing the subordinate area in order to converge the economic and administrative boundaries of the provinces. However, the changes in power, partisan war, and rural disturbances slowed this process down. The transformations depended mainly on local initiatives while the central government was aware of the real situation in the districts.

1. Andreev N. A. Zoning the Tomsk province in 1917–1925. The fate of the regional center in Russia: 400th anniversary of Tomsk, eds. Zinoviev V. P., Fominykh S. F., Chernyak E. I. Tomsk: TSU, 57–61. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/trxokb

2. Borodaev V. B., Kontev A. V. Historical Atlas of the Altai Krai: Cartographic materials on the history of the Upper Ob and Irtysh areas from antiquity to the early XXI century. Barnaul: Azbuka, 2007, 216. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/qpftxv

3. Gergilev D. N. Administrative and territorial structure of Russia as a factor of statehood preservation (a case study of Siberia in 1917–1923). Society: Philosophy, History, Culture, 2017, (9): 53–56. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/zfmljh

4. Golovchenko N. P. From the historical chronicle of the territory of the region (administrative-territorial division of Alatyrsky district). Mordva in Chuvashia: History and modernity: Proc. Interregional Sci.-Prac. Conf., Poloretskoe, 3 Dec 2021. Cheboksary: ChSIH, 2022. 127–136. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/ghedca

5. Zhidkikh A. A. Brief overview of the types of territorial organization of Altai Krai. Vestnik Altayskogo gosudarstvennogo agrarnogo universiteta, 2010, (5): 82–91. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/mbfmef

6. Kazarin V. N. The administrative-territorial reorganization during the "Sibrevkom (Siberian revolutionary committee Siberia) period". Irkutsk Historical and Economic Yearbook, ed. Tsykunov G. A. Irkutsk: ISEA, 2013, 67–78. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/raojqd

7. Kalashnikov A. A. "Fragments" of the district: The creation of the Altai gubernia and the problems of the administrative and economic subordination of the forest districts of the Altai district in 1917–1918. Issues of Siberian history: Proc. Third Intern. Sci. Conf., Omsk, 26–28 Oct 2019. Omsk: OmSPU, 2019, 83–89. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/epxahx

8. Koksharov V. A., Tikhanova E. V. Russia’s south-eastern border: The historical path to consent. Ekaterinburg: Ural University, 2012, 259. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/tnehzl

9. Korzhenevskiy K. B. Territorial delimitation between Altai, Omsk and Semipalatinsk provinces in 1925. Nauchnyi Dialog, 2021, (5): 371–383. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.24224/2227-1295-2021-5-371-383

10. Korzhenevskiy K. B. Formation of the administrative and territorial system of the RSFSR in the first half of the 1920s (On the example of zoning of the West Siberian provinces). Tomsk State University Journal, 2019, (439): 142–146. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.17223/15617793/439/18

11. Lobanov V. B. Administrative-territorial division of the Terek region and Dagestan during the revolution and Civil War, 1917–1920. Caucasology, 2021, (1): 67–80. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.31143/2542-212X-2021-1-67-80

12. Maidurova N. A. Administrative transformations in the Altai Mountains in June 1918 – June 1922. Historical Bulletin, ed. Pustogacheva T. S. Gorno-Altaysk: GASU, 2010a, iss. 4, 57–62. (In Russ.)

13. Maydurova N. A. From the history of administrative transformations on the territory of the Altai Mountains in the first quarter of the XX century. Ethnosocial Issues of Siberian Regions, ed. Goncharova O. A. Gorno-Altaysk: GASU, 2010b, 61–63. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/xwthid

14. Mishina N. V., Ermoshin V. V. Administrative-territorial division of the South of the Russian Far East in the pre-Soviet period (1855–1922): Historicо-geographical aspect. Pacific Geography, 2021, (1): 49–62. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.35735/tig.2021.5.1.005

15. Myasnikov A. V. Activity by of the head of the Nerchinsk district K. N. Tulchinsky for the reorganization of mining industry of Transbaikal in 1917. Tarmakhanov Readings: The Russian Revolution of 1917: Proc. All-Russian Sci. Conf., Ulan-Ude, 24–25 Oct 2017. Ulan-Ude: BSU, 2017, 263–270. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/xokrpv

16. Myasnikov A. V. On the question of the fate of the Mineral cabinet of the Nerchinsk mining district. Border region in historical development: Partnership and cooperation: Proc. Intern. Sci.-Prac. Conf., Chita, 17 Sep 2021. Chita: TbSU, 2021, 68–71. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/sfjwuv

17. Razgon N. I. Bukhtarminsky issue in the territorial division of the Altai province and Semipalatinsk region (1917–1921). Relevant issues of Siberian history: Third Sci. readings in memory of Prof. Borodavkin A. P., Barnaul, 5–6 Oct 2001. Barnaul: AltSU, 2002, 457–464. (In Russ.)

18. Razgon N. I. Formation of the Altai province (1917–1919). Local lore notes. Barnaul: Alt. kn. izd-vo, 2007, iss. 7, 71–81. (In Russ.)

19. Sadykov E. B., Malysheva M. P. Siberia and Kazakhstan: National-territorial division of Siberia and Kazakhstan in 1919–1922. Semey: Shakarim SSU; Alashtana, 2010, 390. (In Russ.)

20. Soboleva T. N. Administrative and territorial structure of the Altai District in 1856–1917. Problems of the history of local government in Siberia in the late XVI – early XX centuries: Proc. III Regional Sci. Conf., Novosibirsk, 19–20 Nov 1998. Novosibirsk: II SB RAS, 1998, 56–60. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/vktsfb

21. Soboleva T. N. Administration of the Altai (mining) district and the Zmeinogorsk region in 1861–1917. Silver Crown of Russia. Essays on the History of Zmeinogorsk, ed. Borodaev V. B. Barnaul: Altaiskii poligraficheskii kombinat, 2003, 233–268. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/uywvhs

22. Sulkevich S. I. Administrative and political structure of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics: materials on territorial transformations from 1917 to 1 July 1925. Leningrad: Gos. izd-vo, 1926, ХХ+300. (In Russ.)

23. Tyapkin M. O. State forest protection policy in Western Siberia in the XVIII – early XX centuries. Barnaul: Buys Russian Interior Ministry, 2019, 496. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/yvkptv

24. Shabelnikov V. I. Theoretical and practical aspects of the Soviet policy of administrative-territorial division and its features in Donbass (1917–1991). Bulletin of Donetsk National University. Series B: Humanities, 2021, (3): 76–87. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/vcslqn

25. Shabelnikov V. I. The evolution of the administrative territorial structure of Donbass in 1919–1938. Bulletin of Donetsk National University. Series B: Humanities, 2020, (2): 56–64. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/zymzfp

26. Shilovskiy D. M., Shilovskiy M. V. Administrative and territorial structure and administrative apparatus of Asian Russia in late XVI – early XXI century. Novosibirsk: NSUEM, 2018, 347. (In Russ.) https://elibrary.ru/ycegqp