The library of On'esime Yegorowitsch Claire, the founder of the Ural society of natural science lovers

This research centers around the library of Onésime Yegorowitsch Claire (1845-1920), a scholar, regional historian, teacher, founder of Ural Society of Natural Science Lovers, whose name at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century was well-known not only in the Urals, but also in many Russian and international scientific centers. The activity of O. Y. Claire gave impetus to serious scientific research of the Urals nature and history. The relevance of the present paper is determined by the recent increased interest in private libraries, including personal scholars’ libraries, related to the revision of many concepts of historical and cultural development, with a focus shift onto creative and constructive human activity. The research investigates the composition of Claire’s book collection, based on the study of available books with owners’ and dedicated inscriptions from the Sverdlovsk Regional Museum and Sverdlovsk Regional Universal Scientific Library n. a. V. G. Belinsky vaults. The complex methods of research (i.e. classification, historical-comparative, paleographic methods, etc.) made it possible to present the composition of the library by sections, according to O. Y. Claire’s interests and activities, to identify the editions, used by him, as well as the range of his communications with scientists, Russian and international scientific societies, colleagues, pupils, friends and relatives. The paper analyses only a part of Claire’s personal library. However, even a small glimpse on Onésime Yegorowitsch Claire’s collection of books proves that this outstanding personality of the Ural and Russia is multifaceted in scientific and socio-cultural aspects.