Role of Rail Transport in Economy of Transcaspian Region: A Case Study of Murghab Sovereign’s Estate (1896–1912)

This study aims to assess the degree of integration of individual economic actors into the regional and national economy through the lens of the Transcaspian (Central Asian) Railway, using the specific case of the Murghab Sovereign's Estate in the Transcaspian Region. The research draws on official statistical compilations from the Department of Railway Affairs of the Russian Empire's Ministry of Finance and reporting materials from the Murghab Estate itself, held in the Russian State Historical Archive. The analysis focuses on the railway shipments of both the Estate's primary agricultural output — cotton — and the secondary products of its local processing plants — cottonseed oil and soap. The findings indicate that the railway transported the entirety of the Estate's cotton harvest to industrial centers in Russia, while a portion of the oil and all of the soap were shipped via rail to supply the local regional market. An examination of inbound freight reveals that the railway also delivered essential, albeit limited, supplies to the Estate, including agricultural machinery, fertilizers, and auxiliary packaging, such as sacks for the internal transportation of cotton. The study concludes that a symbiotic relationship existed between the railway system and the market-oriented enterprises of the region. It is argued that the railroad was a critical catalyst for the integration of the Murghab Estate into both the regional and the broader Russian economic space.

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