Magadan

On July 14, 2019, Magadan will celebrate the 80th anniversary of its founding.

Alas, this date, like so much else in the city’s history, is a lie. Although it is true that the settlement of Magadan was elevated to city status on July 14, 1939, it would be more accurate to use gloomier but more meaningful milestones.

Seven and a half years earlier, on November 11, 1931, the Soviet Central Committee passed a resolution titled “On Kolyma,” aimed at developing mineral resources in the Kolyma River Basin, gold first and foremost. To this end, the notorious Dalstroy Trust was established to facilitate the mining operations that would eventually inflict misery and death on thousands upon thousands.