Family archive as a source of historical memory: the life path of I. N. Agasafyants

Scientific article

doi 10.28995/2073-0101-2025-2-603–620

For citation

Barysheva, Elena V., Nevezhin, Vladimir A. (2025). Family archive as a source of historical memory: the life path of I. N. Agasafyants. N. Agasafyants, Herald of an Archivist, № 2, pp. 603–620, doi 10.28995/2073-0101-2025-2-603–620

Barysheva, Elena V., Russian State University for the Humanities, Moscow, Russia

Nevezhin, Vladimir A., Institute of Russian History, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

Family archive as a source of historical memory: the life path of I. N. Agasafyants

Abstract

In the article on materials of the family archive of Ivan Nesterovich Agasafyants (1891-1959) with attraction of materials of the Russian State Archive of Economics (RSAE) and the Archive of Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation (AFP RF) the pages of the history of our country (USSR) are considered through the history of combat and labor path of the participant of the Civil War, employee of “Intourist”, one of the organizers of diplomatic receptions, cultural worker. Among the surviving materials are personnel documents: personnel records, questionnaires, as well as certificates, characterizations, letters and notes. During the Civil War I. N. Agasafyants was engaged in supplying the Red Army and partisan formations, in the 1920s-1930s - in the system of the State Cinema: he resumed the demonstration of films in Moscow, was the director of the movie theater “Khudozhestvenny”. During the Great Patriotic War he took part in the organization of services for diplomatic missions and military missions of the anti-Hitler coalition allies and representatives of neutral states accredited in the USSR. On the assignment of the Commissar of Foreign Trade of the USSR A. I. Mikoyan, he organized the work and headed as director the restaurant “Grand Hotel” in Kuibyshev, where in 1941 diplomats and accredited journalists of allied countries were evacuated. He took part in servicing delegations at the Yalta and Potsdam conferences. In the post-war period he held senior positions in the system of the USSR Ministry of Trade. His contribution to the development of Soviet trade was the creation of a number of restaurants in Moscow, including the most famous restaurant at the All-Russian Agricultural Exhibition (VSKhV), the Golden Spike. He spent a lot of time on training young personnel, passing on his knowledge and experience to them. The fate of I. N. Agasafyants reflected many events of the Soviet era. The example of the study of sources of personal origin, stored in family archives, confirms the importance of these documents as historical sources in the study of the history of our country. The history of everyday life, like family history, is based on the study of ego-documents. Many of them are kept in family archives and testify to the participation of citizens in certain historical events. The value of unique documents of family archives as historical sources lies in their attention to the lives and fates not only of outstanding statesmen, representatives of scientific and creative intelligentsia, but also of “ordinary” witnesses and participants of historical events.

Keywords

Family archive, personal documents, history of everyday life, history of the USSR, Russian Civil War, Great Patriotic War 1941-1945, diplomatic receptions, Intourist, I. N. Agasafyants.

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About authors

Barysheva Elena V., Doctor of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor, Russian State University for the Humanities, Historical and Archival Institute, Faculty of History, Dean, Moscow, Russia, +7-495-250-66-65, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Nevezhin Vladimir A., Doctor of Historical Sciences, Institute of Russian History, Russian Academy of Sciences, Chief Scientific Associate, Moscow, Russia, +7-916-168-41-54, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The article was received in the editorial office on 11.02.2024, recommended for publication on 20.03.2025