Зональный государственный архив в городе Пинске

The Archives was founded on February 11, 1940 as the State Archives of Pinsk Region.

During the Great Patriotic War, 1941-1945, the Archives stopped its work and resumed it on August 3, 1944.

In 1954, following the liquidation of the Pinsk region, the Archives was reorganized as the Branch of the State Archives of Brest Region in Pinsk.

On September 20, 1996, the Archives was renamed as the Zonal State Archives in Pinsk.

Amount of holdings: 1.062 fonds, 3 collections, 187.039 items

Chronological scope: from 1939 to the present (some documents dating from 1916 onwards)

Geographical coverage:

• abolished Antopol, David-Gorodok, Zhabchitsy and Logishin districts
• Drogichin, Ivanovo, Luninets, Pinsk and Stolin districts of the Brest region

Contents: The Archives holds records created by the activity of local authorities, government institutions, social and political organizations that operated in the region in the period of the unification of Western Belarus with the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR).

The fonds of temporary boards (1939-1940) reflect the formation of the Soviet power in the Pinsk region and the liquidation of the old state system; contain data on the nationalization of the monetary funds of the former Polish banks and the landowners' movable property, and data on buildings and structures in Pinsk that were in private ownership.

The fonds of the town, district and region executive committees contain information on the nationalization of industrial enterprises, the allotment of land plots for individual and public construction, the activities of religious institutions.

The fonds of the manufacturing enterprises reflect the process of industrial development in the postwar period. There are data on the construction and reconstruction of various enterprises, the development of new products, the introduction of new equipment, socialist competition, growth of productivity, inventiveness and rationalization.

The fonds of the state and people's control agencies contain materials concerning the inspection of manufacturing and economic activities at various enterprises, institutions, collective and state farms.

The fonds of the prosecutor's offices and courts contain special reports from 1944-1945 on banditry in the Pinsk region, as well as civil and criminal files.

The data on pensions and allowances to WWII veterans, servicemen's families and disabled veterans are held in the fonds of the district executive committee welfare divisions.

The records on collectivization (1948-1950), collective and state farms, machine-and-tractor and service-and-supply stations (MTS and RTS), land reclamation, crop yield, potato and flax planting, cattle breeding, the availability of plough-lands and agricultural equipment are held in the fonds of the agricultural boards and land offices of the Pinsk regional and district executive committees.

The issues of public education, the liquidation of illiteracy, the extension of school network, the training of specialists in national economy, the education of homeless children etc. are reflected in the fonds of the public education divisions of the district executive committees and in the fonds of various educational institutions.

Records of the cultural institutions illustrate the work of libraries, clubs, and cinemas.

Records of healthcare institutions contain statistics on infectional diseases, children's death and birthrate, medical assistance to the population, and the work of medical institutions.

Sports and mass activities, the work of sports societies are reflected in the fonds of the committees for physical education and sports.

Data on churches and prayer houses, lists of clergy are held in the fonds of the Plenipotentiary Council for Affairs of the Russian Orthodox Church under the BSSR Cabinet for Pinsk Region.

The fonds of the Pinsk Regional Commission on Investigation of Nazi Crimes and Nazi Damage in the Pinsk Region contains data on civilian victims in the Second World War, records on damage caused to enterprises, institutions and individuals, questionnaires for persons who returned from Germany, lists of Nazi criminals and collaborators.

The archival collections include personal papers of people who took part in the national liberation movement in Western Belarus, the Second World War, and the war in Afghanistan, as well as papers of the famous people of the Polesie region (actors, painters) from 1916-2001 and the personnel records of the liquidated organizations.

Catalogues: Systematic 162 389 cards Name 117 cards

Specialized card catalogues: Jews who were shot during World War II Repressed persons Persons who moved to Poland after the war Persons deported to Germany in World War II Citizens of Pinsk, 1939-1941 Court resolutions and decisions Names and renames of streets in the town of Pinsk On distribution of land plots for constructing garages, houses, buildings, and structures On building commissioning

Information and reference materials 464 items, 1938-2006

Reference library 1199 items, 1932-2006 The Library's book collection comprises 1,141 copies of books and brochures in Russian and Belarusian. The newspapers and magazines collection comprises 380 sets of newspapers and 711 copies of magazines. The reference literature includes the Great Soviet Encyclopaedia, the Belarusian Encyclopaedia, dictionaries etc. The Library includes collections of laws and decrees of the BSSR Supreme Council Presidium, the Bulletins of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Belarus, the collection of Decrees and Edicts by President of the Republic of Belarus and government resolutions, papers of congresses and conferences, the Pamyat (Memory) documented chronicles of the Pinsk, Ivanovo, Drogichin, Luninets, and Stolin districts and the town of Pinsk.