The statesman, Olonets, Samara and Kharkov governor Nikolai Protasyev was born

On November 17th (29th), 1854, according to some sources, or in 1852, the statesman and privy councilor Nikolai Vasilyevich Protasyev, who served as governor of Olonets (1902-1910), Samara (1910-1915), and Kharkov (1915), was born.

He was born into a noble family in the Protasyev estate in the corner of Ryazan governorate. His father, Vasily Protasyev (1822-1873), was an officer in the Life Guards Horse Artillery and commander of the 101st squadron of Ryazan militia during the Crimean War. N. Protasyev is the great-nephew of Decembrist Eugeny Obolensky.

After graduating from the Imperial College of Law in St. Petersburg in 1875, N. Protasyev became a member of the Grodno Chamber of the Civil Court. From 1878 to 1887, he served as a district magistrate for the Sapozhkovsky district in Ryazan Governorate. In 1888, he joined the Ryazan Provincial Government as an adviser. In 1890, he was appointed to the government's presence for peasant affairs in Ryazan, and in 1896, he was made vice-governor of Tobolsk Province.

In March 1902, N. Protasyev was appointed Governor of the Olonets Province by decree of Emperor Nicholas II. He served in this position until 1910, during which time he made a significant contribution to the development of the region.

During his tenure, Protasyev played a key role in the reconstruction of the city-forming enterprise of Petrozavodsk – the Alexandrovsky Plant. This allowed the company to transition from producing iron shells to modern steel products.

Additionally, under his leadership, several significant projects were completed in Petrozavodsk. In 1904, a fire station was built and a fire engine was purchased. Central streets were paved, and the public pier was restored.

In 1908, with the assistance of Protasyev, government loans were obtained for the construction of a hydroelectric power plant in central Petrozavodsk. This project, completed in 1910 by architect V. Lyadinsky, was one of the largest of its kind in Russia.

In 1903, N. Protasyev founded an orphanage for orphaned boys, which later became known as the Protasyevsky Orphanage, and also established the Petrozavodsk Male Teachers' Seminary. This was the first educational institution in the Olonets Province to train teachers for public schools.

Since 1904, the governor has been the chairman of the Olonets Provincial Committee for collecting donations for the needs of sick and wounded soldiers and the families of fallen soldiers. In 1907, he organized the Karelian Orthodox Brotherhood. N.V. Protasyev was an honorary judge of the Petrozavodsk Peace Court, Pudozh and Olonets County Zemstvo Assemblies, as well as the chairman of branches of the Russian Red Cross and Water Rescue Society in the Olonets Province.

In 1910, he published a book titled The Project of Connecting the Catherine Harbor in Murmansk with the Russian Railway Network (a Combination of Waterways, Highways, and Railways), in which he discussed the possibility of constructing the White Sea-Baltic Canal.

In 1910, on the initiative of the Petrozavodsk City Duma, N. Protasyev was awarded the title of honorary citizen of both Petrozavodsk and Pudozha. In his honor, Probnaya Street in Petrozavodsk was renamed to Protasyevskaya Street. After the revolution in 1918, the street was renamed Lunacharsky Street. In 2017, a square was laid out in Protasyev's memory in the area of Olonets Governor.

In 1910, Protasyev resigned as the governor of the Olonets province and moved to Samara. In 1915, he was appointed governor of Kharkov. While inspecting an ambulance train that had arrived from the front lines, he contracted typhus and passed away on November 13th (26th) of 1915.

In 1916, an obituary for N.V. was published in the newspaper Volzhsky Day. The obituary, written by Protasieva, praised the deceased's responsiveness and dedication to the public, especially in his work to improve the educational needs of the population and raise their economic well-being. She noted that Nikolai Vasilyevich was always open-minded and willing to help the people, and this quality inspired her to pay tribute to his memory.

N. Protasyev was buried in Moscow, at the Novodevichy cemetery.

During his public service, he received several awards, including the Orders of the White Eagle, Saint Anna I degree, Saint Stanislaus I and II degrees, Saint Vladimir III and IV degrees, and the French Legion of Honor. He also received a commemorative medal for his participation in the first general census of the Russian Empire in 1897.

Lit.: Кораблёв Н. А. Протасьев Николай Васильевич // Карелия: энциклопедия: В 3 т. Т. 2: К–П. Петрозаводск, 2009. С. 440; Кораблёв Н. А. Олонецкие губернаторы и генерал-губернаторы: биографический справочник. Петрозаводск, 2012. С. 110–113; Петрозаводск: 300 лет истории: документы и материалы: В 3 кн. Кн. 2: 1803–1903 / Архивное управление Республики Карелия, Национальный архив Республики Карелия. Петрозаводск, 2001. С. 393; Петрозаводск: 300 лет истории: документы и материалы: В 3 кн. Кн. 3: 1903–2003 / Архивное управление Республики Карелия, Национальный архив Республики Карелия. Петрозаводск, 2003. С. 558; Петрозаводск: хроника трёх столетий, 1703–2003 / РАН. Карельский научный центр. Институт языка, литературы и истории. Петрозаводск, 2002. С. 508; Протасьев Н. В. Проект соединения Екатерининской гавани на Мурмане с сетью русских железных дорог: (комбинация водных, шоссированных и железных путей). Петрозаводск, 1910; Протасьев Н. В. // Почётные граждане города Петрозаводска. Петрозаводск, 2010. С. 36–39.

Based on the Presidential Library's materials:

Протасьев Н. В. Всеподданнейший отчёт Олонецкого губернатора за 1904 год: [черновик]

Протасьев Н. В. Проект соединения Екатерининской гавани на Мурмане с сетью русских железных дорог (комбинация водных, шоссированных и железных путей). Петрозаводск, 1910 (доступно в электронном читальном зале)

Republic of Karelia: Pages of History: [digital collection]

The article was prepared by the National Library of the Republic of Karelia