Libraries of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society: Principles of Formation and Development

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to characterize the overall picture of the creation of the network of libraries of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society and its branches in the pre-revolutionary period and to present individual fragments from the history of their formation and basic tendencies of their development. In preparing the article, the author studied the office materials of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society and its branches, both published on the pages of annual reports and protocols of meetings, and unpublished, stored in the archive of the Geographical Society in St. Petersburg and in the regional archive of Orenburg. Information presented on the pages of anniversary works summing up the results of scientific activities of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society and its branches for a certain period is considered. The results of the study evidenced that basic forms, enlarging library collections of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society, were book exchange, donations and, to a lesser extent, the purchase of publications; the exchange stock based on doublet copies played the key role. Libraries of provincial branches of the Imperial Russian Geographical Society performed a special function of preserving local history publications, which contributed to the formation of the scientific base for studying regions and guaranteed preservation of their historical and cultural heritage.