The socio-historical mission of libraries in providing access to the scientific heritage of the Russian agricultural thoufht

Abstract

Abstract. Modern libraries are becoming intermediaries of social change. At the current stage, their task is to involve document arrays that, for various reasons, have remained underutilized or virtually inaccessible to consumers in the orbit of scientific and information activities. This is especially true for agricultural literature from the first half of the 19th century. To achieve this, it is necessary to identify, preserve, transform into digital format, and provide free access to the scientific heritage of agricultural thought for scientists, historians, and students. The article shows that it was during this period that there was an active process of creating and accumulating agricultural scientific knowledge, which was recorded in books and journals. It was agricultural literature in the first half of the nineteenth century that served as propaganda of agricultural science and practice, rationalization of production. An overview of the main centers of agricultural book publishing in the first half of the 19th century is presented: the Free Economic Society, The Imperial Moscow Society of Agriculture (MOSA), the Society of Agriculture in Southern Russia, the Ministry of State Property, and private individuals. The typology of publications is revealed, and examples of the most significant books on specific areas of agriculture are provided, as well as the range of authors from this period. It is shown that Russian libraries have begun digitizing their collections. The process of creating a national "Register of Book Monuments" is underway, which already includes over 112,000 rare and valuable publications. The importance of this work for the country was once again emphasized by Russian President Vladimir Putin during the announcement of the address to the Federal Assembly (2024), stating the need to modernize the network of scientific and technical libraries in universities and scientific organizations, turning them into real digital centers of knowledge and information.