The question about the history of Yalta’s natural and historical museum (1918- 1924)
The work is devoted to one of the most important stages in development of museum business in Yalta - the history of the first independent museum institution of the city. Based on a complex of unpublished sources and a small number of existing contemporary works dedicated to the museum business of Yalta, the author makes an attempt to recreate the historical chronicle of the Yalta’s Natural History Museum, which existed from 1918 to 1924, most fully. Documents from the State Archives of the Republic of Crimea, the State Archives of the Russian Federation and the Department of Written Sources of the State Historical Museum allow for a more detailed discussion of previously unknown issues relating to the confrontation between the administrations of the Yalta Men's Gymnasium and the Natural History Museum, and also clarify the situation associated with moving the museum from the premises the former boarding house of the male gymnasium in a new building on the Gogolya street, 10. Thus, the object of research of this work is the study of the museum business of Yalta, the subject is the Yalta Natural History Museum. The purpose of the work is to introduce a number of unpublished sources into scientific circulation and on their basis to cover the history of the abovementioned museum. The identified sources can be structured as follows: 1. Reports and notes published in the Notes of the Crimean (Crimean-Caucasian) Mountain Club and other periodicals. 2. Unpublished documents relating to the activities of the museum: a) protocols of a meeting; b) plans and reports; c) contracts with hired workers; d) explanatory notes to higher controlling bodies; e) external correspondence. 3. Reports and reports of CrimeaOKHRIS concerning the museums of Yalta. These materials allow you to analyze the scientific and public life of the city on the example of the Yalta Natural History Museum in a difficult period for the state - the First World War, the Revolution and the Civil War. In the context of frequent changes of the administration, due to the power passing from the hands to the hands, in the conditions of famine and robbery, the dedicated employees of the museum continued their difficult work in educating people, in studying and preserving the richest collections donated by patrons and collected during scientific expeditions.