News from Municipalities
Californians got a call from Totma, Vologda Region.
13.08.2019 10:15
Last weekend Totma, a small town in the eastern part of the Vologda Oblast marked its 882-year anniversary and celebrated a traditional Russian America Day.
Totma once prided itself on the seafaring merchants who traded in Siberia and America. It was a native of Totma, Ivan Kuskov, who founded Fort Ross in California.
Ivan A. Kuskov is remembered for discovery of the American lands and establishment of the Russian trade navy on the American territory. The house where the famous navigator spent the last years of his life was preserved in its original form up to now. It is one of the earliest timbered houses in Tot'ma (it dates back to the 18th century).
Now Kuskov’s former house has been made into a museum full of objects from his California adventures brought by friends of the museum. There is a long-standing friendship between the Totma regional experts and the workers at the Fort Ross museum.
On August 11th Totma residents, municipal administration, museum representatives, folklore collectives, and guests of the town gathered on the central square of Totma for the bell ringing with Fort Ross and a contact with Californias via the Internet. The tradition of ringing bells in exchange with each other was begun in 1991, and now it was reinforced with an image.
Tourism, International and Interregional Cooperation, District of Tot'ma, Ministry of Culture