Igarka

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Town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia

title: "Igarka" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["cities-and-towns-in-krasnoyarsk-krai", "cities-and-towns-built-in-the-soviet-union", "populated-places-established-in-1929", "populated-places-of-arctic-russia", "turukhansky-district", "road-inaccessible-communities-of-krasnoyarsk-krai", "populated-places-on-the-yenisei-river"] description: "Town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia" topic_path: "geography" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igarka" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Town in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox Russian town"]

FieldValue
en_nameIgarka
ru_nameИгарка
image_skyline2020-08-21_14-51-51_Игарка_(cropped).jpg
image_captionIgarka from the Yenesei River
coordinates
map_label_positionright
image_flagFlag of Igarka.svg
image_coaCoat of Arms of Igarka.svg
federal_subjectKrasnoyarsk Krai
federal_subject_ref
adm_district_jurTurukhansky District
adm_district_jur_ref
adm_selsoviet_jurIgarka
adm_selsoviet_typeDistrict town
adm_selsoviet_jur_ref
adm_ctr_ofDistrict town of Igarka
adm_ctr_of_ref
inhabloc_catTown
inhabloc_cat_ref
mun_district_jurTurukhansky Municipal District
mun_district_jur_ref
urban_settlement_jurIgarka Urban Settlement
urban_settlement_jur_ref
mun_admctr_ofIgarka Urban Settlement
mun_admctr_of_ref
pop_2010census6183
pop_2010census_ref
established_date1929
current_cat_date1931
websitehttp://igarkacity.info/
::

|en_name=Igarka |ru_name=Игарка |image_skyline=2020-08-21_14-51-51_Игарка_(cropped).jpg |image_caption=Igarka from the Yenesei River |coordinates = |lats= |longs= |map_label_position=right |image_flag=Flag of Igarka.svg |flag_caption= |image_coa=Coat of Arms of Igarka.svg |coa_caption= |anthem= |anthem_ref= |holiday= |holiday_ref= |federal_subject=Krasnoyarsk Krai |federal_subject_ref= |adm_district_jur=Turukhansky District |adm_district_jur_ref= |adm_selsoviet_jur=Igarka |adm_selsoviet_type=District town |adm_selsoviet_jur_ref= |adm_ctr_of=District town of Igarka |adm_ctr_of_ref= |inhabloc_cat=Town |inhabloc_cat_ref= |inhabloc_type= |inhabloc_type_ref= |mun_district_jur=Turukhansky Municipal District |mun_district_jur_ref= |urban_settlement_jur=Igarka Urban Settlement |urban_settlement_jur_ref= |mun_admctr_of=Igarka Urban Settlement |mun_admctr_of_ref= |leader_title= |leader_title_ref= |leader_name= |leader_name_ref= |representative_body= |representative_body_ref= |area_of_what= |area_as_of= |area_km2= |area_km2_ref= |pop_2010census=6183 |pop_2010census_ref= |pop_density= |pop_density_as_of= |pop_density_ref= |pop_latest= |pop_latest_date= |pop_latest_ref= |established_date=1929 |established_title= |established_date_ref= |current_cat_date=1931 |current_cat_date_ref= |postal_codes= |postal_codes_ref= |dialing_codes= |dialing_codes_ref= |website=http://igarkacity.info/ |website_ref= Igarka () is a town in Turukhansky District of Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, located 163 km north of the Arctic Circle. Igarka is a monotown established around a sawmill which processed timber logged in the basin of the Yenisei River for export. Up to 1956, it was largely inhabited by deportees and political prisoners. Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the town's population has rapidly declined – it decreased from to 4,417 (2019).

History

Igarka was founded in 1929 as a sawmill and a timber-exporting port by the Chief Directorate of the Northern Sea Route. Timber was logged in the basin of the Yenisei River, floated to Igarka where it was processed, and then exported to various distribution centers. The town grew rapidly as deportees during the dekulakization campaigns were sent to the town. Igarka was granted city status in 1931. The town's construction was directed by who envisioned Igarka as an ideal Soviet Arctic city. In 1939, the town reached its peak population of 23,648. Further development was suspended due to World War II, but resumed in the late 1940s when Igarka was envisioned as a naval port.

From 1949 to 1953, the Salekhard–Igarka Railway project made an unsuccessful attempt to connect Igarka to the Russian railway network at Salekhard, which killed thousands of Gulag prisoners. During the deportations of 1948–1951, thousands of civilians were deported to Igarka from the newly occupied territories of the Soviet Union. Some 6,000 to 10,000 Lithuanians were deported during the Operation Spring in May 1948 alone.

After the death of Stalin in 1953, the Salekhard–Igarka Railway project was abandoned and many deportees were allowed to return home. However, the town recovered and by 1965 it was the second largest lumber-exporting port in the Soviet Union. During this era, the town saw construction of typical concrete housing blocks. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the sawmill was not viable in the new free-market environment due to the high costs associated with the harsh climate conditions and long distances to the buyers. The sawmill closed in 2000 leading to the rapid decline in the town's population. Increasing mean annual air temperatures led to permafrost thaw which destabilized and structurally impaired many buildings in the town. To reduce maintenance and utility costs of such buildings, the town demolished and controlled burned the historic district of mainly wooden houses in the mid-2000s. The residents were relocated to the newer apartment blocks.

Geography

Climate

Igarka has a subarctic climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfc)

|location = Igarka, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1929–present |metric first = Yes |single line = Yes |width = auto |collapsed = |Jan record high C = 1.2 |Feb record high C = 0.7 |Mar record high C = 7.2 |Apr record high C = 13.3 |May record high C = 27.8 |Jun record high C = 33.6 |Jul record high C = 34.0 |Aug record high C = 31.3 |Sep record high C = 24.8 |Oct record high C = 14.6 |Nov record high C = 3.1 |Dec record high C = 1.0 |Jan high C = -23.2 |Feb high C = -20.1 |Mar high C = -10.4 |Apr high C = -2.7 |May high C = 4.2 |Jun high C = 16.5 |Jul high C = 21.2 |Aug high C = 17.1 |Sep high C = 9.1 |Oct high C = -2.6 |Nov high C = -16.1 |Dec high C = -21.0 |Jan mean C = -27.2 |Feb mean C = -24.7 |Mar mean C = -16.4 |Apr mean C = -9.0 |May mean C = -0.6 |Jun mean C = 10.9 |Jul mean C = 15.6 |Aug mean C = 12.3 |Sep mean C = 5.3 |Oct mean C = -5.7 |Nov mean C = -20.1 |Dec mean C = -24.9 |Jan low C = -31.5 |Feb low C = -29.1 |Mar low C = -21.7 |Apr low C = -14.7 |May low C = -4.8 |Jun low C = 6.2 |Jul low C = 10.7 |Aug low C = 8.3 |Sep low C = 2.3 |Oct low C = -8.5 |Nov low C = -24.1 |Dec low C = -29.1 |Jan record low C = -55.2 |Feb record low C = -54.8 |Mar record low C = -51.8 |Apr record low C = -42.8 |May record low C = -29.1 |Jun record low C = -9.0 |Jul record low C = -0.7 |Aug record low C = -3.9 |Sep record low C = -14.3 |Oct record low C = -38.9 |Nov record low C = -49.5 |Dec record low C = -55.5 |Jan precipitation mm = 34 |Feb precipitation mm = 31 |Mar precipitation mm = 35 |Apr precipitation mm = 34 |May precipitation mm = 36 |Jun precipitation mm = 57 |Jul precipitation mm = 52 |Aug precipitation mm = 71 |Sep precipitation mm = 56 |Oct precipitation mm = 64 |Nov precipitation mm = 49 |Dec precipitation mm = 45 |source 1 = www.pogodaiklimat.ru | url = http://www.pogodaiklimat.ru/climate/23274.htm | title = Климат Игарки - Погода и климат | access-date = 12 December 2021 | language = ru}}

Demographics

Population: 4,417 (2019); 16,000 (1970); 14,311 (1959); 23,649 (1939). Igarka is a monotown, a town whose economy is dominated by a single industry. Its population rapidly declined after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and after the closure of the main sawmill in 2000.

Before the collapse of the Soviet Union, the town was predominantly populated by Lithuanians, Germans, Russians, Tatars and Poles. When the Soviet Union fell apart many of these people returned to their respective countries, turning the entire area into an entirely Slavic one populated by Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians.

Administrative and municipal status

Within the framework of administrative divisions, it is incorporated within Turukhansky District as the district town of Igarka. As a municipal division, the district town of Igarka is incorporated within Turukhansky Municipal District as Igarka Urban Settlement.

Transportation

The town is located north of the Arctic Circle and is built on permafrost. Though it is situated inland, Igarka is a deep water port situated on the east bank of the Yenisei River and provides access to the Northern Sea Route. It located 673 km from the Yenisei's mouth.

It is served by Igarka Airport, whose location on an island in the middle of the river makes access difficult when the water is partly thawed: in winter one can drive across, and in summer there is a boat connection.

Culture

The town's main attraction is a permafrost museum which has won some pan-European prizes. The museum is located in the former geocryological lab founded in 1930 by the Siberian Branch of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union. A year later, an underground permafrost research station was established. Several shafts were excavated by hand in late 1930s and early 1940s extending as far as 14 meters into the permafrost. Research in these facilities led to the development of building foundations specifically adapted to the permafrost.

Notable people

References

Notes

Sources

References

  1. Lohse, Peggy. (26 November 2014). "A journey to the northern edge of the world: to Igarka by the Yenisei river". [[RBTH]].
  2. (February 11, 2020). "Igarka". Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos centras.
  3. "(USSR) Urban population of the union republics, and their territorial units".
  4. "Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года. Том. 1, таблица 4. Численность населения России, федеральных округов, субъектов Российской Федерации, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов - райцентров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более".
  5. "Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года. Итоги по Красноярскому краю. 1.10 Численность населения гор.округов, мун.районов, гор. и сел. поселе".
  6. "Таблица 5. Численность населения России, федеральных округов, субъектов Российской Федерации, городских округов, муниципальных районов, муниципальных округов, городских и сельских поселений, городских населенных пунктов, сельских населенных пунктов с населением 3000 человек и более - Итоги Всероссийской переписи населения 2021 года".
  7. Law #10-4765
  8. Law #13-2925
  9. "Краеведческий комплекс "Музей вечной мерзлоты"".
  10. [http://www.europeanmuseumforum.org/Bulletin%20July%202002.pdf www.europeanmuseumforum.org] {{webarchive. link. (August 15, 2007)
  11. (October 26, 2018). "Igarka Vanishes: The Story of a Rapidly Shrinking Russian Arctic City". American Geographical Society.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

cities-and-towns-in-krasnoyarsk-kraicities-and-towns-built-in-the-soviet-unionpopulated-places-established-in-1929populated-places-of-arctic-russiaturukhansky-districtroad-inaccessible-communities-of-krasnoyarsk-kraipopulated-places-on-the-yenisei-river