Stepan Rastorguyev
Encyclopedia
Yakutsk
With a subarctic climate , Yakutsk is the coldest city, though not the coldest inhabited place, on Earth. Average monthly temperatures range from in July to in January. The coldest temperatures ever recorded on the planet outside Antarctica occurred in the basin of the Yana River to the northeast...
– after 1904) was an officer of the Yakut Cossack Regiment
Cossack
Cossacks are a group of predominantly East Slavic people who originally were members of democratic, semi-military communities in what is today Ukraine and Southern Russia inhabiting sparsely populated areas and islands in the lower Dnieper and Don basins and who played an important role in the...
and an explorer.
As Rastorguyev's parents died early, he was reared by his kindred. Then he was sent to the Okhotsk Sea coast, Kamchatka and Chukotka
Chukchi Peninsula
The Chukchi Peninsula, Chukotka Peninsula or Chukotski Peninsula , at about 66° N 172° W, is the northeastern extremity of Asia. Its eastern end is at Cape Dezhnev near the village of Uelen. It is bordered by the Chukchi Sea to the north, the Bering Sea to the south, and the Bering Strait to the...
. In 1888 Rastorguyev was tasked to open the straight road from Yakutsk to Verkhoyansk
Verkhoyansk
Verkhoyansk is a town in Verkhoyansky District of the Sakha Republic, Russia, situated on the Yana River, near the Arctic Circle, from Yakutsk. Population: There is a river port, an airport, a fur-collecting depot, and the center of a reindeer-raising area....
and met his engagements.
In 1900 Rastorguyev joined Baron Eduard Toll
Eduard Toll
Eduard Gustav von Toll was a Baltic German geologist and Arctic explorer in Russian service. Often referred to as Baron von Toll or as Eduard v. Toll, in Russia he is known as Eduard Vasiliyevich Toll . Eduard Toll was born on and he died in 1902 in an unknown location in the Arctic Ocean)...
's Russian Polar Expedition on ship Zarya
Zarya (polar ship)
Zarya was a steam- and sail-powered brig used by the Russian Academy of Sciences for a polar exploration during 1900–1903.Toward the end of the 19th century, the Russian Academy of Sciences sought to build a general-purpose research vessel for long-term expeditions. The first such Russian...
.
In 1901, during the first wintering, Toll sent Rastorguyev along with hitherto captain of Zarya N. N. Kolomeitsev
Nikolai Nikolaevich Kolomeitsev
Nikolai Nikolaevich Kolomeitsev, also spelt Kolomeytsev was a Ukrainian Russian naval officer and explorer of the Arctic.-Biography:...
on a long sledge trip. Their mission was to organize coal depots for the Zarya on Kotelny Island and Dikson
Dikson
Dikson Island , initially Dickson, is the name of an island in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, situated in the Kara Sea near the mouth of the Yenisei River. A nearby urban-type settlement of Dikson, which functions as a port and hydrometeorological centre is located at...
, as well as to bring the mail of the expedition to Dudinka
Dudinka
Dudinka is a town and the administrative center of Taymyrsky Dolgano-Nenetsky District of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia. It was the administrative center of Taymyr Autonomous Okrug, which was merged into Krasnoyarsk Krai on January 1, 2007. It is a port in the lower reaches of the Yenisei River,...
. Kolomeitsev and Rastorguev were successful in their trip. They covered the 600 km long distance from Bukhta Kolin Archera, SW of Taymyr Island
Taymyr Island
Taymyr Island, Russian: Остров Таймыр , is a large island in the coast of the Kara Sea. Its length is and its average width about . This island is located west of the Taymyr Gulf in an area of skerries right off the western coast of the Taymyr Peninsula...
, to Dikson in one month.
This mission helped to bring relief to Baron Toll in a stressful situation concerning his relationship with Captain Kolomeitsev during the expedition, and Toll was grateful to Rastorguyev.
For his deserts to Baron Eduard Toll Rastorguyev's name was given to a certain island
Rastorguyev Island
Rastorguyev Island or Rastorguyeva Island is the third largest island of the Kamennyye Islands. It is located in the Kara Sea close to the shores of the Taymyr Peninsula, about 30 km from the coast....
, as well as to a strait and a mountain. By the express petition of Baron Eduard Toll Rastorguyev was awarded the golden medal "For Eagerness" with the ribbon of Order of St. Anne
Order of St. Anna
The Order of St. Anna ) is a Holstein and then Russian Imperial order of chivalry established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp on 14 February 1735, in honour of his wife Anna Petrovna, daughter of Peter the Great of Russia...
and honorary kaftan
Kaftan
A kaftan is a man's coat usually reaching to the ankles with long sleeves, and which buttons down the front. It can be made of wool, cashmere, silk, or cotton. It is often worn with a sash....
.
In 1937 another island, Kolchak Island
Kolchak Island
Kolchak Island or Kolchaka Island , is an island in the Kara Sea located NE of the Shturmanov Peninsula, in an area of skerries south of the Nordenskiöld Archipelago. Compared to other large islands in the area it has a quite regular shape....
in the Kamennye group
Kamennyye Islands
The Kamennyye Islands or Kammennyy Islands is a group islands covered with tundra vegetation. It is located in the Kara Sea, off the coast of Siberia, west of the mouths of river Pyasina.The main islands are :...
, was renamed after Rastorguyev as well, but its previous name has been restored on August 23d, 2005, so that now only one Rastorguyev Island
Rastorguyev Island
Rastorguyev Island or Rastorguyeva Island is the third largest island of the Kamennyye Islands. It is located in the Kara Sea close to the shores of the Taymyr Peninsula, about 30 km from the coast....
remains.