Cholera, the State and Orphans: from the History of the Epidemic in Saratov in 1830

In 1830, Russia was hit by a cholera epidemic that took thousands of lives. The state in this era was concerned about the care of orphans. In Saratov, from the beginning of the cholera epidemic, the “Saratov Special Commission for the Identifi cation and Care of Orphans and Guardianship of the Property of Those Left Behind by Those Who Died of Cholera” was created and operated actively. Its responsibilities included the following areas of work: distributing children left without parents among relatives, searching for such relatives in other provinces and districts, resolving issues of inheritance of property of deceased parents by children, etc. The article is based on unique archival materials and is dedicated to the regulatory framework and main areas of work of this specially created commission. The source base of the study consists of documents stored in the funds of the State Archives of the Saratov Region and the State Archives of the Russian Federation. Based on an analysis of the Commission’s correspondence with various correspondents (including various instructions, orders etc.), the Commission’s working procedures have been reconstructed. The author argues that despite the shortage of personnel, bureaucratic delays, and the incompetence of some offi cials, which hindered the work of the commission, it accomplished its mission with the help of philanthropists and concerned citizens.