Tomsk Governorate (Russian: Томская губерния, romanized: Tomskaya guberniya) was an administrative-territorial unit (guberniya) of the Russian Empire, the Russian Republic, and the Russian SFSR, which existed from 1804 to 1925 as part of Siberian Governorate-General (1804–1822) and West Siberian Governorate-General (1822–1882). Its capital was in Tomsk.

Quick Facts Томская губерния, Capital ...

Tomsk Governorate Томская губерния
Governorate of the Russian Empire
1804–1925
Coat of arms
Location in the Russian Empire
Capital	Tomsk
Area
• 1897	847,328 km2 (327,155 sq mi)
Population
• 1897	1 927 679
• 1906	2,412,700
History
• Established	1804
• Disestablished	1925
Preceded by Succeeded by Tobolsk Governorate Siberian Krai Altai Governorate Novonikolayevsk Governorate Omsk Governorate Yeniseysk Governorate
Today part of	Russia
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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.^[1][2][3]

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.

The coat of arms of the Tomsk province was approved on July 5, 1878, by Alexander II.^[25]

In a green shield is a silver horse with scarlet eyes and a tongue. The shield is surmounted by the Imperial crown and surrounded by golden oak leaves connected by the ribbon of St. Andrew.

By the end of the 19th century, the Tomsk Governorate was divided into seven uezds, which were in turn subdivided into volosts.

In the period of the 19th and 20th centuries, the Tomsk Governorate included uezds (years in the Governorate are indicated in brackets):

• Tomsky (1804–1925)
• Barnaul (1804–1917)
• Biyskiy (1804–1917)
• Yeniseisk (1804–1822)
• Kainsky (1804–1925)
• Kansky (1804–1822)
• Kolyvansky (1804–1827)
• Krasnoyarsk (1804–1827)
• Kuznetsky (1804–1925)
• Turukhansky (1804–1822)
• Mariinsky (1822–1925)
• Zmeinogorsky (1894–1917)
• Togursky (Narymsky) (1917–1925)
• Novo-Nikolaevsky (1917–1921)
• Shcheglovsky (1921–1924)
• Kolchuginsky (1924–1925)

More information No., Uezd ...

No.	Uezd	Uezd town (population)	Coat of arms uezd town	Area, sq. verst	Population (1897),[26] people
1	Barnaulsky Uezd	Barnaul (21073)		106,689.4	584,100
2	Biysk Uezd	Biysk (17,213 )		169,256.3 (area of both uezd)	337,007
3	Zmeinogorsky Uezd	Zmeinogorsk (7,378 )			242,718
4	Kainsky Uezd	Kainsk (5,884)		67,518.3	187,147
5	Kuznetsky Uezd	Kuznetsk (3,117)		81,634.2	161,799
6	Mariinsky Uezd	Mariinsk (8,216)		71,442.1	137,773
7	Tomsky Uezd	Tomsk (52,210)		248,036.4	277,135

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Uezdless towns

Further information: Supernumerary town

More information Included in, No. ...

Included in	No.	Town	Coat of arms uezd town	Population (1897)
Tomsky Uezd	1	Kolyvan		12,000
	2	Narym		1,129
	3	Novonikolaevsk		8,000

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From the beginning of the 19th century, Tomsk Governorate was a place of exile.^[8]

A significant increase in population is due to the fact that the Tomsk Governorate was the main region of agrarian resettlement in Siberia.

In 1905, the population of the province was 2,327,500 people, and the area was 847,328 km² (327,155 sq mi).^[28]

The ethnographic composition of the population of the province is diverse: there are Great Russians (majority), Aesti, Chuvash people, Zyryans, Ostyaks and Ostyak-Samoyeds, Chulym, Baraba, Kuznetsk, Black Tatars and Bukharians, Telengits or Teleuts, and former Kalmyks-Dvoedans. 90% of the population is Slavic.

The main occupation of the population is agriculture. The main crops are wheat, oats, rye, barley, buckwheat, potatoes, flax, and hemp.^[8][12] The system of field cultivation is fallow-fallow.^[12] In many areas of the Altai okrug, the cultivation of grain is possible only under the condition of artificial irrigation. In part, modern irrigation channels represent the restored irrigation structures of the peoples who previously lived here – the Chinese and that people, the monuments of which are numerous stone mounds, kurgan stelae (baba), petroglyphs on rocks, etc., scattered throughout the Altai Mountains. In part, irrigation channels of later origin were built by the Kalmyks themselves as they increasingly began to move to agriculture.^[29]

Animal husbandry developed.^[8] In the Biysk Uezd, deer (mountain deer, Cervus maral) are bred.^[12] Beekeeping played an important role, although it was carried out very irrationally.^{[clarification needed]} Part of the bee products is sent to the Irbit Fair. In addition to apiary beekeeping, there is also honey hunting.^[12] Fisheries also developed.^[8] Fishing is the main occupation of inorodtsy and partly of Russians.^[12] Hunting and birding is in decline due to an increase in population, forest fires and the merciless extermination of animals and birds.^[12] Of the birds, mainly the hazel grouse comes into trade.^[12]

The cedar nut trade exists in the same areas where hunting is carried out. The nut is sold partly to Tomsk, partly to the Irbit, Ivanovo-Krestovsky and Ishimsky and other fairs, as well as abroad.^[12] The berry trade is important, especially lingonberries.^[12]

In the governorate, grain, fish, salt, wine, lard, honey, wax, leather, pine nuts and furs were produced and delivered to other parts of the country and abroad.^[12]

Tomsk Governorate was the main producer of Siberian butter.^[8]

The mining and metallurgical industry in the Altai mining district has been developed since the time of Demidov, the Dimidov mines and factories came under the jurisdiction of the Cabinet. Silver smelting is carried out at the Suzunsky plant.^[12] The gold industry and the factory business have recently (1901) fallen into decline.^[12] Coal is developed in the Bachatsky, Afoninsky and Kolchuginsky deposits, Sudzhenskaya and Anzherskaya mines of the Kuznetsk coal basin.^[8][12]

The salt industry is poorly developed. Salt goes on sale in the Tobolsk and Yeniseisk Governorates, and Glauber's salt goes to soda and glass factories.^[12]

In the 1840s steamboat traffic began along the rivers Ob, Tom, and Chulym.^[8]

From 1901 to 1903, the Chuisky tract was built.^[8] Traffic is open on the railway lines that passed through the Tomsk province:^[8]

• Chelyabinsk–Omsk–Novonikolaevsk (1896)
• Ob (Novonikolaevsk)–Krasnoyarsk (1898) of the Trans-Siberian Railway
• Taiga–Cheremoshniki (Tomsk) (1898)
• Novonikolaevsk–Semipalatinsk (1915)
• Barnaul–Biysk (1915)
• Yurga–Topki–Proyektnaya (1916)
• Topki–Kemerovo (1916)
• Tatar–Slavgorod (1917).

Doctors in the governorate in 1898 numbered one hundred and twenty, with four female doctors and seven dentists.^[12] There were twenty-two pharmacies and one balneary. There were six children's shelters for orphans and the children of migrants.^[12] All educational institutions totaled 1350, including 90 in towns. There were 54,714 students in total, of which only 12,000 were girls.^[12]

Born in the governorate:

• Ivan Pyryev (1901–1968)
• Vera Volkova (1905–1975)
• Tatiana Proskouriakoff (1909–1985)
• Yegor Ligachyov (1920–1921)
• Innokenty Smoktunovsky (1925–1994)

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