SOCIAL LIFE
At the top of the kekoor, or the Baranof Hill as it was called in recent
years, there stood a building occupied during Russian days as a
residence by the chief managers of the Russian American Company. The one
known to the residents and visitors of the earlier days of the American
occupation was known as the Baranof Castle, although Baranof himself
never lived in it. There were three, if not four different buildings
which occupied that position. The first to be placed there was built at
once upon the founding of the post and is described by Resanof in his
letters to the Company as being a very "Unpretentious building, and
poorly constructed." Before the close of Baranof's administration,
however, according to the account of Captain Golofnin, it was an
establishment well built and furnished with some degree of luxury.
[Illustration: The Baranof Castle. Built in 1837 for the official
residence of the chief managers of the Russian American Company, and
occupied from the time of Kuprianof until 1867. It was the headquarters
building of the Commanding Officers of the U. S. troops 1867 to 1877, and
was destroyed by fire in 1894. The U. S. Agricultural Department
building occupies the site at the present time.]
The structure known as the Baranof Castle, which stood on the hill at
the time of the transfer to the United States, would seem to be the
third building constructed on the site, was completed about 1837,[13]
and was burned to the ground on the morning of March 17th, 1894.
The historic building was the scene of many interesting events, and
sheltered many distinguished persons.
The first mistress who presided over the mansion on the kekoor was
Madame Yanovski, a daughter of Baranof and the wife of Lieutenant
Yanovski, the third chief manager of the Russian American Company.
Lady Wrangell was the first to come from Russia to preside as the First
Lady of Sitka, and she was succeeded by Madame Kupreanof, who is said to
have crossed Siberia and the Pacific Ocean to accompany her husband to
his post. Sir Edward Belcher gives a spirited account of a ball given in
his honor, in the castle, which was then, in 1837, just completed. He
says: "The evening passed most delightfully," although "few could
converse with their partners," English being spoken by few at that time
in the capital of Russian America.
Princess Maksoutoff, the wife of the last chief manager of the colonies,
came from St. Petersburg, but died soon after her arrival, and the stone
which marks her grave may be seen on the hill between the two
cemeteries, near the site of the upper Blockhouse. Her successor, the
second Princess Maksoutoff, young and beautiful, presided with grace and
tact over the mansion until the transfer of the territory to the United
States. She was one of six Russian ladies present at the ceremonies and
is said to have wept when the Russian flag was lowered.
There is a legend of a beautiful princess whose ghost haunted the Castle
for many years. The story has been told by many at different times and
is one of the romantic tales that cluster around the old metropolis of
the fur trading days. Her lover was sent away or killed through the
influence of an _ober offitzer_ who sought her hand in marriage.
Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore, who wrote so delightfully of Sitka in her
journeys in Alaska in 1883, says that, "By tradition the Lady in Black
was the daughter of one of the old governors. On her wedding night she
disappeared from the ballroom in the midst of the festivities, and after
a long search was found dead in one of the small drawing rooms."[14]
[Illustration: The Grave of the Princess Maksoutoff.]
The chief managers entertained lavishly, and the dinners in the Castle
were events long to be remembered. They were well worthy the
representatives of a rich and powerful company, a corporation with a
domain that was greater than the realm of many a royal ruler. Into the
sumptuously furnished and richly decorated dining-room came the bishop
and priests, resplendent in the official robes, the naval officers
glittering in their gold laced uniforms, the secretaries, accountants,
storekeepers, all in the uniform of the Ministry of Finance, the masters
and mates of the ships in the harbor; the guests in their best apparel;
all gathered around the hospitable board of the chief manager. At times
a hundred sat at the table and back of them dined the cadets of the
naval school. After the dinner came dancing and until morning the gayety
went merrily on, for Russian cheer is proverbial, and their hospitality
is lavish.
Usually the Captain of the port, the secretaries, three public and two
private, two masters in the navy, the commercial agent, two doctors, and
the Lutheran clergyman, dined with the chief manager by general
invitation, Sir George Simpson tells us. The civilian masters of
vessels, accountants, engineers, clerks, and bookkeepers, dined at a
club which was organized by Mr. Etolin, and they lived at the old club
house a little to the east of the church.
A wedding was an elaborate affair, a bridal cake which figured in many
mystic signs, tea, coffee, chocolate and champagne; the ladies attired
in muslin dresses, white satin shoes, silk stockings, kid gloves, fans,
and other necessary appurtances. After the ceremony of an hour and a
half was consummated, the ball was opened by the bride and the highest
officer present, and the dancing lasted until three in the morning.
Easter was an event of much hilarity after the close of Lent, which was
strictly observed by all. From morning to night everyone ran a gauntlet
of kisses; when two persons met, one said, "Christ has risen," while the
other replied, "He has risen, indeed," and then followed the
salutations. These seemed not to have been distasteful to visitors,
although one remarks that most of the dames had been more liberal with
other liquids than of pure water. Throughout it all was a continuous
peal of bells, for the Russian is fond of bell-ringing. All carried
eggs, boiled into stones, and dyed, gilded or painted, which they
presented to their friends.