Development of Felted Footwear Craft in Tambov Province During Transition from Late Imperial to Soviet System

This article examines the development of the handmade felted footwear craft within an agrarian region. The novelty of this study lies in its interdisciplinary approach and its analysis of an extensive timeframe encompassing the late Imperial era, the period of War Communism, and the years of the New Economic Policy (NEP). The research draws upon a diverse source base, including regional archival documents, the authors’ own field archive of oral histories, published statistical data, administrative records, and contemporary periodicals. The study demonstrates that during the late Imperial period, the work of felters was predominantly subsistence-based, with cottage industries only beginning to emerge in areas with a high concentration of artisans. It is reported that the mechanization of production progressed at a slow pace. Furthermore, the authors conclude that the rapid development of trade cooperatives among felters during War Communism was driven by the demands of the military front. The article also pays particular attention to explaining the reasons for the decline in the number of these trade cooperatives during the NEP. Finally, it is emphasized that the concurrent use of dialectal and literary lexicon related to the professional domain within the same locality not only reflects a deep-seated cognitive framework for labor but also underscores the significance of specific types of work and the value of artisanal skill.

felted footwear craft, cottage industry, Tambov Province, Soviet transition, trade cooperatives, War Communism, NEP, oral history, dialectology, labor culture