Urban Artisans in Simbirsk Governorate in the Second Half of the 19th Century

Abstract

The development of handicraft production in the provincial cities in Simbirsk governorate in the second half of the 19^th century is considered. The data about artisans population and their specialization in the towns of the province are given. It is noted that these data quantify not only the craft specialization of county towns, but also the degree of economic development of each individual city and governorate in general. It is shown that the analysis of craft production in the cities takes into account three categories of craftsmen: masters, workers and students. The results of the dynamics of the handicraft business in the second half of the 19^th century are presented. The author dwells on the analysis of craft activities of two largest cities in the province of Simbirsk of the second half of the 19^th century, Simbirsk and Syzran, as these cities had the most favorable economic conditions for the expansion of craft specialization. It is concluded that the handicraft production, with a direct dependence on the development of agriculture, was the beginning of the industrial form of peasant entrepreneurship. The author comes to the conclusion that the greatest number of artisans was observed in the field of clothing and shoes.