The article is devoted to the life and scientific work of the famous scientist historian Vladimir Petrovich Ivankov, who worked for many years at the Institute of History, Language and Literature of the Bashkir Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences (now the UFIC RAS) as the head of the sector of the history of Soviet society, who will turn 105 years old on May 27, 2024. He lived a difficult life, but full of important and turning points in his life. The article draws on unique sources deposited in the scientist’s personal collection in the Scientific Archive of the Ufa Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences. First of all, these are his personal files, which contain documents relating to his work at the institute. Of no small importance are the published prospectuses of generalizing collective works preparing for scientific development, where V.P. Ivankov is listed as a member of the team of authors as a scientific supervisor or executive editor. Some documents from the personal fund of the famous scientist R.G. were used. Kuzeev in the Scientific Archive of the UFIC RAS, which contained information about the preparation of a collective work on the history of the BASSR, which was subsequently entrusted to V.P. Ivankova. Vladimir Petrovich Ivankov receives a historical education at the Udmurt Pedagogical Institute. He begins his career in schools in Izhevsk. After graduating from the Higher Party School under the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks, he worked in the party bodies of Udmurtia. In the early 1950s. studies at the Academy of Social Sciences, where he defends his Ph.D. thesis. In 1957 he was transferred to Bashkiria, where he worked at the regional party school as head of the department of history of the CPSU, then at BSU. Despite his busy schedule, he devoted a lot of time to scientific work, an interest in which began in his student years, and continued at the Academy while preparing his dissertation. While still in Udmurtia, he participated in the development of the history of the local party organization and the preparation of documentary collections. In Bashkiria, he was involved in writing general works on regional history. From September 1963 to November 1983 all further life and scientific activity of V.P. Ivankova was associated with the Institute of History, Language and Literature of the Bashkir Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Having headed the sector of the history of Soviet society, he took on the difficult tasks of writing the third volume of a collective work on the history of the BASSR, the history of the party organization of the republic. The tasks set by the executive editor were completed in a timely manner and successfully, summarizing works were published, which became an important result of the research activities of the scientist and the institute itself.