К истории освоения Северного морского пути: собрание пароходовладельцев в Ирбите 25 февраля 1879 г.

Abstract

The article presents the publication of the decision of the meeting of major ship owners and industrialists of the Urals and Western Siberia, held on February 25, 1879 in Irbit. The preserved document reveals one of the pages of the history of the development of the Northern sea route: the organization of research expeditions to the area of the Ob Bay. The source emphasizes the close relationship between regional authorities and representatives of private capital in the development of the Northern territories and the search for water communication between Central Russia, European States and Siberia. It shows the great importance that the Siberian merchants attached to the possibility of opening new transport routes that can provide a profitable export of large volumes of Siberian raw materials to European markets. The 18 people who gathered, representing the largest Western Siberian and Ural private shipping companies, believed that trade through the Northern seas can give a powerful impetus to the development of both Western and Eastern Siberia: promote the rise of agriculture, trade and industry, ensure the flow of money to the region, stimulate demographic growth and development of sparsely populated areas. At the same time, the source under investigation fully reflects the pragmatism of merchants who did not want to invest in dubious enterprises and sought to achieve their goal – finding a reliable passage through the Northern waters – in the shortest possible time and with minimal costs. The ideas and recommendations formulated at the Irbit meeting of ship owners, although not unconditionally, served as the basis for planning further scientific research in the Kara sea by the Maritime Ministry and the Ministry of Finance.