Researching High Labour awards?

[Riley1965]

Is it yet possible to research labor awards such as the Order of Labor Glory, etc.?

Doc

[CtahhR]

Almost all Labour Ukazes can be researched to a limited extent.
Check out the researched Orders/Medals/Groups to see to what extent. Sometimes there has been a "complete" breakthrough and other times just more questions aroused.

http://soviet-awards.com/forum/sovie...ukaz-site.html

[Riley1965]

Thanks man of mystery!!!

Doc

[Auke]

Some pre-GPW labor awards can be researched by serial number. No record cards and citations though, but it usually yields the recipient's full name, year of birth, Decree date, and often a short description of the Decree. I don't know if this goes for all prewar labor awards, but I've had success wit about a dozen Lenins and HSLs.

[matteti]

If you have documents with name and awarding date you might be lucky and find the Ukaz with full list of recipient names and profession/position, factory name, city, etc... but other time you just find approximation of the reason for awarding as mentionned by Ctahhr.

I was very lucky to find a lot of details for an awardee of order of lenin who was a foreman in a brigade/team of workers who mounted electrical lines during electrification of Moscow-Sverdlovsk railway. Another one, about which I have yet to post was a real breakthrough. I have four documented labor medals and socialist badges. Researched found out that he was also an HSL! Another similar case of low value medals, I found the the current home address and phone number of the person as well as the factory where he worked and still exist today.

You just have to search through period newspapers, vedomostis (SSSR and Republican/local) and use your imagination and creativity when using English and Russian search engines. And you must be very very patient and a bit lucky as well!

[CtahhR]

Luck is probably the key factor.
I've managed to find out key bits of information, newspaper articles, photographs and contact information all through google.

Progress is slow due to the number of languages, number of websites, people with the same name and sheer number of recipients I am searching after.

Very rare is any recipient a closed case as more information presents itself constantly.

Some of the recipients I have the awards of have published papers and books. If funds were available I would also obtain them.

I also have a group to a recipient whose name was used as a homage after his death in a novel loosely based on his influence. This adds a whole different context to the hobby. Many of the recipients are usually just seen as sterile names. In their home town, region or possibly nation the name may still have a great reverence.

[Auke]

We're getting off topic here, but published works referencing the recipient (or even written by the recipient) can be an extremely interesting form of documentation to accompany an award group. A few years ago I researched a Glory 3rd Class to an Estonian soldier, and the citation mentioned an article about him being published in Rahva Hääl, the official newspaper of the Estonian Communist Party.

More recently I researched a Red Star that was awarded to a Medical Service Major, who held a degree roughly equal to a PhD ("Candidate of Medical Sciences"). According to the citation he authored a number of publications, which a quick Google search confirmed. I should try to obtain one of those.

[PaulR]

I have what I believe to be a Labor Lenin... how do I go about searching for information?

[Keith]

Do you have the date of the article from Rahva Hääl? I may be able to track down the article.

Keith

[matteti]

Originally Posted by PaulR

I have what I believe to be a Labor Lenin... how do I go about searching for information?

Do you have exact awarding date and full name? Then you could search various sources.