Methodological approaches to the dalstroi studies

The article examines the conceptual ideas of the studies of the Dal'stroi historical phenomenon. As one of the largest divisions of the NKVD (the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs) and MVD (the Ministry of Internal Affairs, since 1946) system, the Dal'stroi produced gold and other valuable metals mining in the north of the Russian Far-East in the 1930-s - 1950-s. The scholars used the theoretical basis of the totalitarianism conception, the modernization theory, informative possibilities of economic geography, systems approach, comparative analysis, and other methods. Different approaches and the distinctions in understanding the essence of historical processes became visible. The problem of the Dal'stroi's typicality or uniqueness for the 1930s -1950s was unresolved by the researchers. To understand the essence of the Dal'stroi's phenomenon, such concepts as an "integrated plant" (integrated industrial complex), "super-organization", and "state monopoly" were introduced intothe historical science. The epoch of the Dal'stroi was defined as the period of "transformations of backward periphery into the industrially-developed region", as the stage of "the second wave of colonization", as the period when "the extraordinary model of achieving the stage of early industrialization" was implemented in the region. The generalization of the various researches' basic results allowed to offer new perspective directions in studying the historical phenomenon of the Dal'stroi. The original results will be achieved by using the methodology of the mobilization approach. The actual expansion of the studies is represented also within the limits of social history, academic biography, and gender approach.