Rural Settlements of the Ostyako-Vogul and Yamalo-Nenets National Districts in the 1930s: Location, Density, Economic and Socio-Cultural Development

Relevance.An integral part of the history of the Russian state for many centuries has been the settlement and economic development of its territories, accompanied by the formation and development of a settlement system on new lands.

In the second half of the XIX – first third of the XX centuries, one of the most intensively colonized outskirts of the country was Western Siberia – a vast region stretching from the Ural Mountains in the west to the The Yenisei in the east. It was here that the main stream of "unauthorized" and "government" migrants went, looking for free empty land for agricultural use.

As a result of colonization in Western Siberia, a geographically integral and functionally interconnected set of settlements was formed, which had a pronounced regional specificity due to the influence of natural-geographical, economic, demographic, cultural and other factors. At the same time, the settlement network of the region was subject to constant changes associated with the transformation of the political, socio-economic and cultural spheres.

The network of settlements in Western Siberia was transformed most intensively in the 1920s and 1930s compared to previous periods. This was due to the final establishment of the Soviet government, which began to implement a new settlement and agrarian policy both in the country as a whole and in its individual regions.

The transition to planned economic development, the use of new forms of resettlement, mainly in the form of collective farms of various types (artels, communes, collective farms), as well as state farms, the gradual "offensive" on farms as "Kulak farms" could not but affect the density of the settlement network, its typical structure and features of functioning.

Especially noticeable were the changes in the development of the settlement network of the northern territories of the West Siberian region, the dynamics of the number and size of which remained extremely low for several previous centuries, and the indicators of economic and socio-cultural development were not comparable with similar indicators inherent in the villages of the southern part of the region.

The Soviet state, attaching special importance to the inclusion of the regions of the North in the economic life of the country, launched active work to intensify the settlement of poorly developed territories, increasing their attractiveness for immigrants. The first results of this work appeared in the 1930s, after the collapse of the NEP and the transition to collectivization and industrialization.

Unfortunately, in domestic and foreign historiography, the issues of education and development of rural settlements in Northwestern Siberia have not received proper coverage. The researchers paid attention only to certain aspects of this topic. For example, P.N. Naumov analyzed the process of formation of Soviet power and its impact on the socio-economic development of the region ^[8], L.V. Alekseeva considered the problems of creating collective farms in the Yamalo-Nenets District ^{[2, 3]}, V.V. Aksarin studied the number and typology of settlements in the Ostyako-Vogul district ^[1]. V.P. Karpov, N.Y. Gavrilova and G.I. Gerasimova emphasized the problem of transferring the nomadic population of the region to a sedentary lifestyle by eliminating camps and settling in large settlements ^[7]. The issues of socio-cultural development of Northwestern Siberia, the creation and expansion of a network of educational, medical, club institutions were considered by O.I. Eremeeva, N.M. Fayzullina, N.S. Kazakova, A.S. Rashchektayeva, etc. ^{[4; 11; 6; 10]}.

Nevertheless, a comprehensive study of the process of settlement in the territory of Northwest Siberia, the formation of a network of settlements here, the determination of the specifics of its industrial, economic and socio-cultural infrastructure has not been carried out to date.

The purpose of this study is to characterize the location, density, economic and socio-cultural development of the settlement network of the Ostyako-Vogul and Yamalo-Nenets National districts in the 1930s.

The main source for studying the settlement network of the Ostyako-Vogul and Yamalo-Nenets National districts was the materials of the Omsk Regional Department of National Economic Accounting (OBLUNKHU) Gosplan of the USSR, containing statistical data on key indicators of social development of administrative-territorial units of the region ^[9]. Of course, this source is not without drawbacks, it mainly presents data from the census bureau of the UNKHU as of January 1, 1936, as well as summaries of reports from regional departments of health, public education, transport and communications, etc. There are errors and typos in the statistical indicators, which is recognized by the officials of the Oblunkhu. Nevertheless, the information contained in the "Materials" reflects the main trends and indicators of the economic and socio-cultural development of rural settlements in the territories under consideration.  

Results and discussion.After the October Revolution, as a result of the administrative and territorial reform, the northern "Obdorsky" and "Yugorsky" lands, which were part of the Tobolsk province until 1921, were included in the newly formed Tyumen province, and then (from 1923 to 1934) – in the enlarged Ural region of the RSFSR.

From January to December 1934 The Ostyako-Vogul and Yamalo-Nenets national districts were part of the Ob-Irtysh region, created as a result of the unbundling of the Ural region, after which both districts were assigned to the Omsk Region and were listed as part of it until 1944.

In 1934-1944, the national districts under consideration included eleven districts. Of these, six (Berezovsky, Kondinsky, Laryaksky, Samarovsky, Surgut, Shuryshkarsky) were included in Ostyako-Vogulsky and five (Nadymsky, Priuralsky, Purovsky, Tazovsky, Yamal) – in Yamalo-Nenets.

Harsh climatic conditions, terrain features and soils teeming with swamps, as well as the traditions of the management of local peoples (Khanty, Mansi, Nenets, Selkups) determined the features of the location of settlements. Most of the settlements in Northwestern Siberia were located along rivers. The density of settlements had a pronounced zonality, increasing from north to south (see Table 1).

Table 1

Dependence of the density of the settlement network in the regions of North-Western Siberia on their location in different natural and climatic zones (1930s) [calculated by: 9]

* Average number of square kilometers per 1 locality

As can be seen from table 1, five of the eleven districts of the national districts under consideration were located in the polar tundra zone. In the Nadym, Purovsky, Tazovsky and Yamal districts, settlements were located at such a considerable distance from each other that it is impractical to talk about the full development of the settlement network as a functionally interconnected set of structural units. In these areas, settlements existed separately from each other, the interconnections between them, due to significant territorial remoteness and poor development of trade and economic contacts, were practically absent.

The more densely populated area of the polar tundra zone was the Urals. There were 42 settlements here, including the district center of the Yamalo-Nenets National District, the village of Salekhard (until 1933 – Obdorsk). The Labytnangi and Katravozh yurts, the village of Aksarka, and the Sobsky yurts located within a radius of fifty to seventy kilometers gravitated to him geographically and economically. 

A significant part of the Shuryshkarsky district occupied the forest tundra zone. The district center, the village of Muzhi, located on the Malaya Ob River, performed mainly administrative functions in relation to the remaining seventy–six villages of the district, its trade and economic importance was small.

The Laryak and Surgut districts were located in the transition zone from the forest tundra to the taiga. The Laryak settlements were concentrated mainly in the southern part of the district. In the Surgut district , most settlements were located along the river . Ob and its tributaries, which was associated not only with convenient transport accessibility, but also with the spread of fishing activities.

The settlements of Berezovsky, Kondinsky and Samarovsky districts occupied the taiga part of the region. The density of the settlement network here (with the exception of the impenetrable forests of the Berezovsky district) was higher compared to the areas located to the north.

In the mid-1930s, the process of collectivization was going on at an active pace in the Ostyako-Vogul and Yamalo-Nenets National districts. The data in Table 2 show that by 1935 more than half of all peasant farms in the northern regions were united into collective farms.

Table 2

The number of collective farms and the number of farms united in them in the regions of North-Western Siberia in the 1930s. [counted by: 9]

Nevertheless, based on the presented data, it can be stated that the process of collectivization by the mid-1930s covered the entire territory of Northwestern Siberia.

At the same time, collectivization was carried out at a higher rate in the Ostyako-Vogul National District than in the Yamalo-Nenets. According to L.V. Alekseeva, this was explained by the fact that nomads numerically prevailed in the Yamalo-Nenets District, who, having gone into the tundra, became inaccessible to local authorities, so it was difficult to unite them into collective farms ^[2].

         The specifics of local climatic conditions and the economic activity of the population influenced the specialization of the collective farms formed. Among them, the most common were complex (fishing-hunting, vegetable-livestock), fishing and reindeer herding collective farms ^{[3, p. 91]}.

In the total number of collective farm associations of the Ostyako-Vogul district, mixed production artels (SPA) and the simplest production associations (PPO) prevailed. So, in the Berezovsky district, 21 out of 70 collective farms functioned in the form of SPA, and 41 out of 70 collective farms functioned in the form of PPO. In the Samara region, 42 out of 49 collective farms were in the form of SPAS. In the Shuryshkarsky district, the bulk of collective farms (19 out of 23) operated in the form of PPO ^{[9, pp. 152-164]}.

In the Yamalo-Nenets National District, collective farms in the form of PPO have become the most widespread. For example, in the Tazovsky district 11 out of 12 collective farms were formed as PPO, in the Yamal region this indicator was 11 out of 13, respectively, in the Ural region – 9 out of 11 ^{[9, pp. 165-174]}.

During the period under review, the implementation of the state policy on the transfer of the nomadic peoples of the North to a sedentary lifestyle began. In this regard, the simplest production associations (PPOs) were considered by the Soviet authorities not only as a form of collectivization, but also (in the future) as a possibility of liquidation of nomad camps and creation of collective farm settlements of stationary type.

The industrial and economic infrastructure in the northern districts of the region under consideration was poorly developed. In each district there were one or two fish factories, in some settlements – timber processing or brick factories, canning plants.

One of the tasks of socio-economic development of the northern territories of Western Siberia was the development of trade. The cooperation that was gaining momentum pursued the goal of trade provision for residents of national districts. At the same time, the state paid special attention to the development of retail trade ^{[5, p. 106]}.

The network of retail establishments in the Ostyako-Vogul and Yamalo-Nenets districts was represented not only by shops and shops, stalls and tents, but also by ORSOS (state retail trade organizations), points of integrated cooperation, etc. (see Table 3).

Table 3

The number of retail trade enterprises in the regions of North-Western Siberia in the 1930s. [counted by: 9]

Table 3 shows that the Samarovsky district was distinguished by the most developed retail network in the 1930s, with 228 retail enterprises of various types operating in 77 localities. In general, analyzing the tabular data, we can talk about a large territorial unevenness in the placement of retail facilities in the regions of Northwestern Siberia, which resulted in low availability of goods for the population.

In order to overcome the "cultural backwardness" of the indigenous peoples of the North, to introduce them to the ideas of socialist construction as soon as possible, the party and Soviet bodies launched work on the creation and development of institutions of socio-cultural infrastructure in the region.

The result of the efforts of central and local authorities was an increase in the number of educational institutions in national districts, the development of communication institutions, the emergence of club institutions (see Table 4).

Table 4

The number of institutions of socio-cultural infrastructure in the regions of North-Western Siberia in the 1930s ^{[9, pp. 183, 186, 189]}

There were 171 schools in the Ostyako-Vogul National District, including 137 primary, 32 incomplete secondary and 2 secondary. Since the distance between settlements was sometimes 200 kilometers or more, boarding schools were organized for children from neighboring villages ^{[11, p. 69]}. Several technical schools worked in the administrative centers of the characterized districts. Thus, pedagogical and reindeer herding colleges operated in Salekhard, pedagogical and medical technical schools operated in Ostyako-Vogulsk.

Attaching great importance to the organization of cultural and educational work, the state actively promoted the creation of red corners, reading rooms, clubs, cultural centers, peasant houses, etc. in rural settlements of the indigenous peoples of Northwestern Siberia. In every fifth settlement of the Ostyako-Vogulsky and in every third village of the Yamalo-Nenets districts, by 1935, one of the listed club institutions was functioning. They performed educational, propaganda, educational and other tasks, contributed to the formation of collectivist principles of life among the population ^[12].

During the period under review, the postal and telegraph communication network is expanding. Postal agencies, mailboxes are being set up in all districts, and a telegraph is being conducted. The data in table 4 indicate the spread of radio communication. Nevertheless, there were shortcomings in the development of communication institutions. So, in the north, unlike the rest of the districts of the Omsk region, by 1935 there was no telephone connection at all.

By January 1, 1936, there were 18 hospitals (with 303 beds) and 22 outpatient clinics in the Ostyako-Vogul district. There were 3 hospitals (with 165 beds) and 10 outpatient clinics in the Yamalo-Nenets District ^{[9, p. 187]}. Of course, such a number of medical institutions could not meet the needs of the population for medical care, and therefore the problem of developing a network of healthcare institutions in the national districts of the Omsk region was quite acute.

In addition to educational, club, medical institutions, communication points, research and experimental stations and laboratories functioned in some localities. For example, a meteorological station worked in the village of Salekhard, as well as experienced land and vegetable, zonal reindeer, field and livestock stations. A sanitary and bacteriological laboratory operated in the village of Ostyako-Vogulsk.

Conclusion.Summing up the results of the study, it should be noted that the settlement network of the Ostyako-Vogul and Yamalo-Nenets National districts in the 1930s was distinguished by its small number, small size, poorly developed infrastructure.

In the areas of the Yamalo-Nenets Okrug, by this time, a sparsely populated small-scale settlement system with a low density of structural units (yurts, villages, villages, settlements, etc.) had developed. There were territories of so-called "selective" development, mainly associated with the fishing activities of the population. Under the conditions of the predominance of the dispersed settlement system, the settlements of the polar tundra zone, being at a considerable distance, practically did not interact with each other. 

In the Ostyako-Vogulsky district, the settlement network was less sparse, and its density (density) increased as we moved towards the areas located in the south of the district. Settlement in the district was characterized by small and medium-sized settlements, the presence of insignificant territorial concentrations of settlements along rivers that served as transport arteries in the region. Interaction between settlements was mainly administrative in nature, trade, economic and socio-cultural ties were poorly developed.

By the mid-1930s, 58.8% of all peasant farms in the Ostyako-Vogul district were part of collective farms. In the Yamalo-Nenets District, collective farms in the form of the simplest production associations (PPO) were the most widespread, in Ostyako-Vogulsky, along with PPO, collective farms in the form of mixed production artels (SPA) were often found. According to their specialization, most collective farms were complex (fishing and hunting, vegetable and livestock), fishing and reindeer herding.

During the study period, the network of retail establishments expanded in the national districts of Northwestern Siberia. The Samarovsky district was distinguished by the most developed retail network. At the same time, there was a large territorial unevenness in the placement of retail facilities in the regions of the region, which resulted in low availability of goods for the population.

The 1930s were a time of active creation and development of institutions of socio-cultural infrastructure in the region. There was an increase in the number of primary, lower secondary and secondary schools, a reindeer herding, medical and two pedagogical colleges were opened. As a result of the implementation of the tasks of cultural education, stationary and mobile club institutions appeared in rural settlements in the form of reading rooms, red corners, collective farmers' clubs, etc. Mail, telegraph, radio were distributed.

The problem of organizing medical care remained as acute as ever. There were 21 hospitals and 32 outpatient clinics in 842 settlements of the northern districts.