«Tobolsk provincial sheets»; provincial administration; social life in Siberia.

What is it about?

Tobolsk governor V.A. Artsimovich (1854-1858) played a significant role in publishing of the first newspaper in Siberia «Tobolsk pro­vincial sheets» in 1857. Though his management of the newspaper was short (less than a year), newspaper’s informal part gained educationalcharacter (and further, these features were preserved). Authors and correspondents came from educated part of officials, teachers and priests. Future ideologist of «oblastnichestvo» (Siberian regionalism), G.N. Potanin, began his literary career in informal part of «Tobolsk provincial sheets». He sent his 13 articles from Omsk and received an honorarium (which was not common for provincial sheets). New Tobolsk governor A.V. Vinogradsky (1859-1862) had more conservative views therefore the number of publications and authors decreased. At the beginning of A.I. Despot-Zenovich’s governorate (1862-1867), the informal part of «Tobolsk provincial sheets» was used for strengthening of personal authority of the governor and for open discussion of some parts of local life. In 1863­ 1864, Tyumen merchant N.M. Chukmaldin who did not fall under a typical image of "the Siberian merchant Kondrat" was published in «Tobolsk provincial sheets» (with the governor’s permission). N.M. Chukmaldin's articles were written in a feuilleton genre and devot­ed the topics of economy, self-government and education in Tobolsk. A.I. Despot-Zenovich petitioned before the Ministry of Internal Affairs for extension of the program of informal part. The program was expanded, nevertheless many of genres and subjects, that were touched upon in provincial sheets, were beyond the scope. It led to the censorial warning in 1864 and polemic articles were not pub­lished anymore. Chronology of «Tobolsk provincial sheets» is based on the mixed characteristics - activity of governors and editors. Period of V.A. Artsimovich’s governorship (1857-1858) and period of I.N. Yushkov’s editorship (1859-1870). Archival sources and articles allow to claim that role of governors and editors in «rise» and «decline» of the newspaper was conditional. For example, I.N. Yushkov was appointed the editor by conservative governor A.V. Vinogradsky. When A.I. Despot-Zenoviche was a governor he used «Tobolsk provincial sheets» as an official mouthpiece only in 1863-1864 till the censorial warning from Petersburg.

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