Mikhail Tebenkov

Mikhail Dmitriyevich Tebenkov(Russian:Михаил Дмитриевич Тебеньков;alsoTebenkof;1802 – April 3, 1872) was a Russianhydrographerandvice admiralof theImperial Russian Navy.From 1845 to 1850, he served as director of theRussian American Companyand the governor ofRussian America.

Section of Tebenkov's Sitka Island chart, the place where his Atlas' maps were drawn.

He is especially noted for having surveyed and mapped the still little-known coast ofAlaska.HisAtlas of the Northwest Coasts of America: from Bering Strait to Cape Corrientes and the Aleutian Islandswas published in 1852 and contained 39 engraved maps.

Career

In 1821, Mikhail Tebenkov graduated from the Naval Cadet Corps School. For the next three years, he served on different ships in theBaltic Sea.In 1824, Tebenkov was put in charge of logging for shipbuilding purposes nearNarva.

In January 1825, he joined theRussian American Company,which led colonizing and trade efforts in North America. He would later command the company-owned brigantinesGolovnin,Ryurik,Chichagov,and asloopnamedUrupin 1826–1834.

Tebenkov surveyedNorton Soundon behalf of the ImperialRussian Hydrographic Servicein 1831 and was the first European to sight the bay that now bears his name. He surveyedTebenkof Bayin 1833 before returning toSt. Petersburg.

In 1835 Tebenkov sailed fromCronstadtback to Alaska viaCape Hornas commander of the Russian American Company's shipElena.He arrived inSitkain April 1836. Between 1845 and 1850, Tebenkov served as the director of theRussian American Companyand the governor ofRussian America.

Tebenkov was perhaps the most outstanding Russian surveyor of the time, dedicating much time and patient work to the improvement of charts of the Alaskan coast.

Legacy

Trebenkov's notedAtlas of the Northwest Coasts of America: from Bering Strait to Cape Corrientes and the Aleutian Islandswas published in 1852. The 39 maps of this atlas were engraved at Sitka around 1849 byKozma Terentev(or Terentief), an Alaskan-Russiancreoleman.

Besides Tebenkof Bay, other geographic features of Alaska, includingTebenkof Glacier,Mount TebenkofandPoint Tebenkofwere named after Captain Mikhail Tebenkov.

Works

• Atlas sieverozapadnykh beregov Ameriki.Sitka (1872).
• Gidrograficheskiia zamiechaniia k Atlasu sieverozapadnykh beregov Ameriki.Sitka (1872).

External links

• Atlas, images