Importance. The issues of the evolution of various models and forms of agricultural production in 16th – first third of 20th century in Russia are topical issues. Special attention is paid to the study of such aspects as cooperative beginnings in the countryside, Soviet agrarian transformations and the development of the collective-state-farm system. Materials and Methods. Published sources and materials from a number of archives were involved. General scientific methods and a number of other approaches were used, including an interdisciplinary approach, a modeling method. Results and Discussion. The possibility of studying the process of transformation in the village through the prism of agrarian models and forms is highlighted. The study of the system of socio-economic relations in the countryside in the context of ongoing transformations in the countryside. Conclusion. It is concluded that changes in the models and forms of agricultural production were formed by the authorities under the influence of external and internal challenges. Well-thought-out, well-prepared reforms had a positive impact on the activities of individual participants in agrarian relations, as well as in the political and economic spheres of the life of the state as a whole. Successful agrarian reforms led to an increase in labor productivity and an improvement in the quality of life in the countryside. Collectivization destroyed many traditional foundations, turning peasants into rural proletarians.