Activities of Tomsk Mining Circle in Siberia during First World War (1914—1918)

Abstract

The article deals with the activities of the Tomsk Mining Circle during the First World War (1914—1918). The main attention is paid to the process of formation of the organization, activities to provide assistance to the front, Russian prisoners of war, as well as to promote the work of the Fourth Siberian Tomsk Medical and Nutritional Detachment. The relevance of the study is due to the growing interest in the topic of charity during the First World War. A detailed examination of the functioning of a particular social organization of a social orientation allows us to identify common and special features inherent in this phenomenon in this period. Thanks to the involvement of a wide range of sources, it was possible to establish a chronological sequence in the actions of the Tomsk Mining Circle in collecting and sending goods with things and products to the front; identify the military formations that were assisted; find out with which public organizations, mining and industrial enterprises the circle communicated, etc. It is concluded that the Tomsk Mining Circle, as an example of an institution formed on a professional basis, occupied one of the prominent places in the system of charitable organizations in Siberia.