Putyatin Island noticeably stands out for its extraordinary beauty against the background of the other eleven islands located in Peter the Great Bay. The bay has a huge area (9 thousand sq. km) and is considered the largest in the Sea of Japan. Putyatin Island is popular with tourists who, at the first opportunity, try to visit this beautiful corner of the Primorsky Territory of Russia. This is confirmed by many excursions.
Location
Peter the Great Bay consists of six small ones. In one of them - Strelok Bay - there is Putyatin Island. It is 50 kilometers southeast of Vladivostok. Cape Startsev on the island and Cape Strelok on the mainland are separated by 1.5 kilometers. The length from north to south is 14 kilometers, and the territory of the land protruding above the water is 27.9 square meters. km. In the southern part there is a rocky ridge, the so-called kekurs called "five fingers", from which you can contemplateneighboring Askold Island. The relief is represented mainly by mountains, among which Mount Startseva (353 m) rises on the northern side. Putyatin Island (Primorsky Krai) is a very picturesque place.
The coastline has a jagged shape, the landscape is diverse - hills alternate with either ravines or valleys. The composition of the granites of the east coast has a quartz layer, the southern coast - granite with a tint of red.
Historical digression
In 1858, an island met on the way of a sail-screw clipper. The ship's crew made a description of it and put it on the map. The island was named after Russian Admiral E. V. Putyatin
Efim Vasilyevich held high government positions, including being a diplomat. In the 50s of the 19th century, he led an expedition with the participation of two frigates - "Pallada" and "Diana", during which the eastern coast of Primorsky Krai was explored and described. The merits of this expedition include the discovery of such objects as the Rimsky-Korsakov archipelago, Olga and Posyet bays. In the 60s of the 19th century, another Russian expedition under the command of Lieutenant Colonel V. M. Babkin was engaged in surveying Peter the Great Bay. Putyatin Island was studied in detail. The bays were marked on the corresponding maps back in those days.
The island in the 90s of the XIX century
Before the island was discovered, there were no human settlements on it. With the advent of warm summer days, fishermen from the mainland came here. The settlement of the island began in the 90s of the 19thcentury. It began with the fact that in the summer of 1891 it was visited and examined by the son of the famous Decembrist Bestuzhev, Alexei Startsev. At that time he was a merchant of the first guild. He was known as a talented and educated entrepreneur.
Subsequently, Startsev decided to rent the island for 99 years, after which he settled the Rodnoye estate on it, in which his family settled.
Island Entrepreneurship
Possessing extraordinary entrepreneurial acumen, Startsev soon launched his business at full capacity. At first, a brick factory appeared, where modern production equipment was installed at that time, and each brick was stamped. A lot of buildings in Vladivostok can testify to the great demand for bricks from the island. Since then, Putyatina Island (Primorsky Territory) has become very famous throughout the Far East.
Not much time has passed since the day the brick factory was put into operation, when a porcelain factory grew up near it - the pride of Startsev, whose products were no worse than Chinese in quality. The next project that the entrepreneur tried to implement was the production of silk. For this, the silkworm was specially brought here, and then it was grown here. Soon the ferry began to go to Putyatina Island.
Another achievement of a descendant of the Decembrist is the breeding of a breed of horses, which was obtained by crossing a Transbaikal horse and an English horse. The Trans-Baikal breed possessed endurance and unpretentiousness. Animal husbandry on the island gradually expanded. The farm bred Kholmogory cows, Yorkshire pigs, as well as ducks and geese of exceptionally well-known breeds.
In addition, a deer farm was built and a nursery for snakes was established. The inhabitants of the island were provided with honey and fruits thanks to the bee apiary organized here, the planted garden and vineyards, especially since favorable weather allowed them to do all this. Putyatin Island flourished, the residents were grateful to the talented entrepreneur for providing a well-paid job.
At that time, there was a fairly developed infrastructure with good roads. The inexhaustible energy and hard work of Alexei Dmitrievich turned the once wild land into a flourishing island oasis. The efforts did not go unnoticed by the Fatherland, which was confirmed by medals for achievements in agriculture, participation in exhibitions.
The End of Prosperity
The island prospered as long as the owner was alive. However, after his sudden death in 1900, a gradual decline began. After the October Revolution of 1917, the property was nationalized, followed by the creation of an animal state farm on its basis.
The village and the southern part of the island are connected by a road, near which you can see the monument to Startsev - the man who breathed life into a deserted area. Grateful residents immortalized the outstanding entrepreneur in the fall of 1989.
Unfortunately, there is a gradual decrease in the number of inhabitants in the village. Now themthere are no more than 700 people. Alexei Startsev's house stood for almost a hundred years.
Nature of Putyatin Island
The area is covered with hardwood forest. Among the thickets of oak, there are bushes of elderberry and wild rose, and among the trees - linden, maple, Manchuzhur walnut. This is a picturesque area with beautiful bays, cliffs and magnificent meadows. Berries and mushrooms abound on the island.
An attraction of the island can be considered a relic plant that has existed for almost 100 million years. Lotus grows on Lake Gusinoe. According to a well-known Buddhist legend, the bud of this flower became the birthplace of the Buddha. Lotus flowers bloom every year after July 20th. So Putyatin Island was once a beautiful flower with a developed infrastructure, which soon closed its petals.
