Restoration of the Altai Provincial Zemstvo Council activities in June-July 1918

In this article the author shows how the restoration of activities of the supreme Zemstvo body in Altai Province occurred. The study is based on the analysis of the archival documents on the activities of the Altai District Council in the period. The paper describes the whole complex of measures carried out in the province to restore the ruined system of management, evaluates the general level of their effectiveness, describes the structure of the Altai Provincial Zemstvo Council and the financial situation of the Altai District Council after the restoration of the activity. After the restoration of its activities in the summer of 1918, the Altai District Council faced a number of problems, the organization of the Zemstvo was destroyed. All departments serving the life and economy of Altai Province were transferred to central uniform provincial departments, and the Department of Agriculture was only a secretariat with an immature Agronomy Department with a single instructor as an appendix. To resolve the situation, committees were created: financial, of public education, insurance, medical-veterinary, agronomic, road and staff. The restored structure of the Provincial Council included the following departments: secretariat; accounting; financial-accountant; instructor; public education; agronomy; insurance; charity; medical care; veterinary; land; statistical; road construction; library; economic. In addition to the organizational crisis, the local government also faced the financial crisis. The Treasury was empty. There were either no funds, or access to them was difficult. However, the Altai Zemstvo was able to determine the main directions of work on the restoration of the local economy in a short time. The organizational issue was solved quickly, and almost immediately the Zemstvo moved on to solving economic problems. Representatives of the economically active population who wanted to establish a peaceful life came to power in the province again. In June-July 1918, the Altai Zemstvo members were able to recover the structure of the provincial administration in the province. Thus, in the first stage of the Siberian counter-revolution, the Altai Provincial Zemstvo was able to partially restore the system of local self-government the Bolsheviks destroyed and proceed to the arrangement of a peaceful life. The experience of creating a workable administrative unit of the provincial level and the active approach to solving the pressing problems of the region in the conditions of the total shortage of cash can be popular nowadays.

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