Tomsk Governorate () was an administrative division (a guberniya) of the Russian Empire, Russian Republic, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic located in Siberia from 1804 to 1925 as part of the Siberian Governorate-General (1804–1822) and the West Siberian Governorate-General (1822–1882). Its seat was in the city of Tomsk.
General information
The Tomsk Governorate was located in the southeastern part of Western Siberia. To the north, north-west and west it bordered the Tobolsk Governorate, to the south-west the Semipalatinsk region, to the south and south-east Mongolia, and to the east and north-east the Yeniseisk Governorate.
In terms of territory, it corresponded to the territories of the modern Altai Krai, the Republic of Altai, Kemerovo Oblast, Novosibirsk Oblast and Tomsk Oblast of the Russian Federation, Ust-Kamenogorsk and Semipalatinsk Oblast of Kazakhstan, the western lands of Krasnoyarsk Krai and the eastern lands of Omsk Oblast. During the 20th century, the territory of the province constantly diminished.
History
19th century
On February 26 (March 9), 1804, by decree of Emperor Alexander I, the Tobolsk Governorate was divided into two parts and the Tomsk Governorate was established.
The governorate included eight uezds (okrugs since 1898): Biysk Uezd, Yenisei Uezd, Kainskiy Uezd, Krasnoyarsky Uezd, Kuznetskiy Uezd, Narymsky Uezd, Tomsky Uezd, and Turukhansky Uezd.
On January 26 (February 7), 1822, as a result of the administrative reform under the project of Speransky, by the Decree of Alexander I "On the division of Siberia into two general governments", the Siberian General Governorate was divided into West-Siberian Governorate-General (Tobolsk Governorate, Tomsk Governorate and Tomsk Oblast) and East-Siberian Governorate-General. The Yeniseisk Governorate of the East-Siberian Governorate-General was separated from the Tomsk Governorate (the eastern territories of the Yeniseisk Uezd, the Krasnoyarsk Uezd, Turukhansk Uezd were separated) and the Omsk Oblast (the territories with the cities of Semipalatinsk and Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kolyvan Uezd), Narym Uezd is included in Tomsk Uezd. The lands of the Kolyvano-Voskresensky (Altai) mining district became part of the Tomsk Governorate, and the uezds were renamed okrugs.
In 1823 Tobolsk Governorate consisted of six okrugs: Barnaulsky, Kainsky, Kolyvansky, Kuznetsky, Tomsky, and Charyshsky.
On September 17 (September 29), 1827, the center of the Charyshsky okrug was transferred to the city of Biysk; the okrug was renamed Biysk okrug.
In 1838, with the founding of the provincial gymnasium, public education began to develop.
On April 6, 1838, when the Omsk Oblast was abolished, the cities of Semipalatinsk and Ust-Kamenogorsk were transferred to the Biysk okrug of the Tomsk Governorate.
In 1842, Pyotr Chikhachyov was charged by Nicholas I with a scientific expedition mission to the Altai mountains. He reached the sources of the rivers Abakan, Chu, and Chulyshman. Traveling across the Southern Altai, Chikhachyov reached undiscovered territories. He investigated also the Sayan Mountains. In the Northern Altai he found the richest coal deposits in the world, which he called the Kuznetsk Coal Basin. He also studied the culture, life, and customs of various nomadic and settled tribes of this region, having made in 1845 a geographical and geological description of these regions. His book includes illustrations by the noted Russian artist E. Mayer who traveled with him and Ivan Aivazovskii, of the steep valleys, deep lakes, and wide rivers typical of the area through which Chikhachev traveled.
On May 19 (May 31), 1854, part of the territory of the Tomsk Governorate with the cities of Semipalatinsk and Ust-Kamenogorsk was transferred to the Semipalatinsk Oblast.
On December 6 (December 18), 1856, the Kolyvan okrug was abolished and the new Kiysky okrug was formed.
November 1 (November 23), 1857, the Kiysky okrug was renamed the Mariinsky okrug.
1876 the Imperial Academy of Sciences sent Polyakov Ivan Semenovich on scientific travels to research in the Ob River valley, and in the summer of 1877 Polyakov was sent by the academy to the Kuznetsk Ridge (Mariinsky Uezd) to find the corpse of a mammoth (which turned out to be pieces of asbestos).
On May 16 (May 28), 1878, by order of the State Council of the Russian Empire, the first university in Siberia and Asia was founded in Tomsk.
On June 6 (June 18), 1894, part of the volosts was separated from the Biysk okrug with the formation of the Zmeinogorsk okrug.
On June 2 (June 14), 1898, the okrugs were renamed uezds.