Orotukan

Orotukan (Russian: Оротука́н) is an urban locality (an urban-type settlement) in Yagodninsky District of Magadan Oblast, Russia, located in the Kolyma region about 300 kilometers (190 mi) north of Magadan, on the right bank of the Orotukan River (a tributary of the Kolyma). Population: 1,531 (2010 Census);[1] 2,760 (2002 Census);[2] 5,638 (1989 Census).[3]

History

In 1931, as geologists found gold reserves in the valleys of the Kolyma region, they built a camp on the river close to present location of Orotukan. Shortly thereafter the construction of the Kolyma Highway (also known as the Road of Bones) began.

The settlement was founded on its present site in the mid-1930s. It received its name from the river, whose name came from the Yakut word Ortokon meaning small burnt meadow or forest area. From 1935, a camp in the regional section of the gulag system operated by Dalstroy was located here.[4]

In the 1940s, a repair work and factory for mining equipment were established. Orotukan was granted urban-type settlement status in 1953.

Economy

During the Soviet era, the settlement was a center for gold mining and exploration.[5]

Transportation

The settlement lies on the M56 Kolyma Highway, which runs from Magadan through Susuman in the northwestern part of Magadan Oblast and onto Yakutsk, although the road is only completely passable during winter when the rivers en route are frozen. The road distance between Orotukan and Magadan is about 400 kilometers (250 mi), and almost 1,500 kilometers (930 mi) to Yakutsk.

Notable people

References

  1. ↑ Russian Federal State Statistics Service (2011). "Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года. Том 1" [2010 All-Russian Population Census, vol. 1]. Всероссийская перепись населения 2010 года (2010 All-Russia Population Census) (in Russian). Federal State Statistics Service. Retrieved June 29, 2012.
  2. ↑ Russian Federal State Statistics Service (May 21, 2004). "Численность населения России, субъектов Российской Федерации в составе федеральных округов, районов, городских поселений, сельских населённых пунктов – районных центров и сельских населённых пунктов с населением 3 тысячи и более человек" [Population of Russia, Its Federal Districts, Federal Subjects, Districts, Urban Localities, Rural Localities—Administrative Centers, and Rural Localities with Population of Over 3,000] (XLS). Всероссийская перепись населения 2002 года [All-Russia Population Census of 2002] (in Russian). Retrieved August 9, 2014.
  3. ↑ Demoscope Weekly (1989). "Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 г. Численность наличного населения союзных и автономных республик, автономных областей и округов, краёв, областей, районов, городских поселений и сёл-райцентров" [All Union Population Census of 1989: Present Population of Union and Autonomous Republics, Autonomous Oblasts and Okrugs, Krais, Oblasts, Districts, Urban Settlements, and Villages Serving as District Administrative Centers]. Всесоюзная перепись населения 1989 года [All-Union Population Census of 1989] (in Russian). Институт демографии Национального исследовательского университета: Высшая школа экономики [Institute of Demography at the National Research University: Higher School of Economics]. Retrieved August 9, 2014.
  4. ↑ Town history (Russian)
  5. ↑ Great Soviet Encyclopedia. Entry on Orotukan (Russian)

Coordinates: 62°16′N 151°40′E / 62.267°N 151.667°E / 62.267; 151.667

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