Johan Hampus Furuhjelm, (; 11 March 1821 – 21 September 1909) was a Russian Finnish vice-admiral and explorer, commander of the Russian Baltic Fleet, Governor of the

Russian Far East The Russian Far East ( rus, Дальний Восток России, p=ˈdalʲnʲɪj vɐˈstok rɐˈsʲiɪ) is a region in North Asia. It is the easternmost part of Russia and the Asia, Asian continent, and is coextensive with the Far Easte ...

Taganrog Taganrog (, ) is a port city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, on the north shore of Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov, several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don (river), Don River. It is in the Black Sea region. Population: Located at the site of a ...

and

Russian America Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

Early years

Johan Hampus Furuhjelm was born into a Swedish-speaking noble family of Furuhjelm in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

Grand Duchy of Finland The Grand Duchy of Finland was the predecessor state of modern Finland. It existed from 1809 to 1917 as an Autonomous region, autonomous state within the Russian Empire. Originating in the 16th century as a titular grand duchy held by the Monarc ...

on March 11, 1821. Johan Hampus was the son of Otto Wilhelm Furuhjelm (1794–1871) and Ulrica Johanna Fredrika Fock (1795–1856). Johan Hampus was schooled at home until 1836 when he joined the Navy (1st Finnish Sea Battalion ''1:a finska sjöekipaget''). Graduate of the Navy Corps, Furuhjelm served at Russian Baltic Fleet in 1838–1846. Promoted to midshipman 1839, lieutenant 1845. In 1843–1844, he participated in hydrographic works in the

Gulf of Finland The Gulf of Finland (; ; ; ) is the easternmost arm of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland to the north and Estonia to the south, to Saint Petersburg—the second largest city of Russia—to the east, where the river Neva drains into it. ...

on board the schooner ''Meteor''. In 1846–1847, he served at the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

In Russian America

In 1850, Furuhjelm was detached to the new post in the

Russian-American Company The Russian-American Company Under the High Patronage of His Imperial Majesty was a state-sponsored chartered company formed largely on the basis of the Shelikhov-Golikov Company, United American Company. Emperor Paul I of Russia chartered the c ...

and sailed from

Kronstadt Kronstadt (, ) is a Russian administrative divisions of Saint Petersburg, port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal cities of Russia, federal city of Saint Petersburg, located on Kotlin Island, west of Saint Petersburg, near the head ...

to Novoarkhangel'sk (''New Archangel'', as the Russian community in Sitka was called) on board of the ship ''Nikolai I''. He arrived to Novoarkhangel'sk on 23 April 1851, where he was appointed commander of Novoarkhangel'sk's seaport and sailed to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

on behalf of the

. In 1853–1854, Furuhjelm was captain of the supply ship ''Count Menshikoff'' in the squadron of Admiral Yevfimy Putyatin. In 1854, he was appointed commander of the Ayan seaport and on 11 December 1858, Governor of

. During a Christmas ball in

in 1858, Furuhjelm met the 22-year-old Anna von Schoultz. On 10 January they were engaged and on 2 February 1859 the wedding took place. In Novo Archangelsk, Furuhjelm was forced to acknowledge that one of the most acute needs was rebuilding the Indians' trust in the white man. During his period as governor of

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

, he managed to put an end to hostilities with natives. Once, he used the trick of an eclipse of the moon. He threatened the Indians to take away the moon if they did not obey him. Furuhjelm's magic made a deep impression on the natives. They were also impressed because the governor dared to go out on inspection tours without an escort. He made the trips with just paddlers and an interpreter. Furuhjelm was successful in winning the Indians' respect and the camp was normalized. Hampus-Furuhjelm-1859

One of the most important successes which Furuhjelm noted during his period as governor was that he was successful in abolishing the ice treaty with

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. According to a contract which had been signed,

had to deliver a certain amount of ice to San Francisco at a fixed price. The problem was that the product melted down on the way to the warmer climates. The ice contract became very awkward for the Russian colony. Furuhjelm arranged for a new contract to sell ice to San Francisco: 3,000 tons at $25.00 a ton. The Furuhjelms had three children during their five years in

. The oldest daughter Annie Furuhjelm later became one of the foremost figures within the international women's movement and a member of

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

's Parliament. On 17 March 1864 Johan Hampus Furuhjelm turned over his duties to prince Dmitri Petrovich Maksutov, who happened to be the last governor of Russian America. In the summer of 1864 it was time for the Furuhjelm family to make a move and leave Russian America.

Later years

In 1865–1870, Furuhjelm served as military governor of

Primorsky Krai Primorsky Krai, informally known as Primorye, is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (a krais of Russia, krai) of Russia, part of the Far Eastern Federal District in the Russian Far East. The types of inhabited localities in Russia, ...

. On 25 February 1871 he was appointed chief of Russian seaports in the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the cont ...

, where he contributed a lot to development of

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( ; , ) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai and the capital of the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia. It is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, covering an area o ...

and

, opened the ''Amur Telegraph Company'', several lighthouses and ship dockyards. In 1872 Furuhjelm was made

Flag Officer A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark the position from which that officer exercises command. Different countries use the term "flag officer" in different ways: * ...

of the Russian Baltic Fleet. In 1874, Ivan Furugelm was promoted to the rank of vice admiral and appointed governor of the city of

(1874–1876), where he opened the first naval school (founded by Ivan Shestakov) and the first public library ( Chekhov Library) on 23 May 1876 (old style). Among library's most frequent visitors was

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; ; 29 January 1860 – 15 July 1904) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer, widely considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career as a playwright produced four classics, and his b ...

. Anna Furuhjelm joined her husband in Taganrog for the winter 1874–1875 with the two youngest children. In 1878–1880 Hampus Furuhjelm served as commander of Revel's naval port. From 1880 until 1886, he was at the disposal of the commander of the port of

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

. In 1889, on the occasion of his jubilee as an officer in the

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until being dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution and the declaration of ...

, he received a golden snuffbox, decorated with diamonds and the initials of

Alexander III of Russia Alexander III (; 10 March 18451 November 1894) was Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Poland and Grand Duke of Finland from 13 March 1881 until his death in 1894. He was highly reactionary in domestic affairs and reversed some of the libera ...

.Annie Constance Christensen. ''Letters from the Governor's Wife. A View of the Russian Alaska 1859-1862''. Aarhus University Press, 2005 Furuhjelm died on 21 September 1909 near

Urjala Urjala (; , also ) is a municipality of Finland. It is part of the Pirkanmaa region, near the town of Forssa. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density Population density (in ...

, present-day

Places named after Furuhjelm

* Mount Furuhelm – A mountain 3,610 ft., 4.5 miles SW of Baranof, on East coast of

Baranof Island Baranof Island is an island in the northern Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle, in Alaska. The name "Baranof" was given to the island in 1805 by Imperial Russian Navy captain Yuri Lisyansky, U. F. Lisianski in honor of Alexander Andrey ...

Alexander Archipelago The Alexander Archipelago () is a archipelago (group of islands) in North America lying off the southeastern coast of Alaska. It contains about 1,100 islands, the tops of submerged coastal mountains that rise steeply from the Pacific Ocean. Deep ...

. Named in 1935 by

U.S. Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands covering of land. The major divisions of the agency are the Chief's ...

''for Ivan Vasilievitch Furuhelm, mining engineer and Governor of

, 1859–1864''; * Furugelm Island – Island in Peter the Great Bay,

Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it ...

. Two islands discovered by Johan Hampus Furuhjelm in 1853. Named for him by the Russian Admiral Putyatin; *Furuhelm Street – in Sitka,

, located between Edgecumbe Drive and Georgeson Street, starting at Kimsham Street. *Furugelm – A point and an island at

Sakhalin Sakhalin ( rus, Сахали́н, p=səxɐˈlʲin) is an island in Northeast Asia. Its north coast lies off the southeastern coast of Khabarovsk Krai in Russia, while its southern tip lies north of the Japanese island of Hokkaido. An islan ...

. Named for Carl Harald Felix Furuhjelm, b. May 13, 1830 in

, d. April 30, 1871 in Nakhodka, East

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

(brother of Johan Hampus Furuhjelm).

References

Sources

* Энциклопедия Таганрога. Таганрог: Антон, 1998. — 624 с. — . * {{DEFAULTSORT:Furuhjelm, Johan Hampus Finnish explorers 19th-century Finnish nobility Governors of the Russian-American Company Governors of Taganrog Explorers from the Russian Empire Imperial Russian Navy admirals 1821 births 1909 deaths Military personnel from Helsinki People from the Grand Duchy of Finland Nobility from the Russian Empire Russian people of Finnish descent Swedish-speaking Finns Russian people of Swedish descent