s the Koloshian Church, and its site is
marked by a monument. Both these buildings long ago fell into ruin and
were removed.

The Russian religion was closely associated with the Government, so in
the colonies the official charter of the Company compelled them to
provide well for the church and the priests according to the standard of
the times, and the work was carried on with zeal and fortitude by the
missionaries who came from the monasteries of the old Russian cities.

Of all the missionaries who came to Russian America, the greatest was
Ivan Veniaminof. Father John he is often called in the old records, a
wonderful man, broad of mind and of body, combining the qualities that
inspire awe and reverence with a gentleness of word and deed that made
him beloved wherever he was known. His zapiski, or letters, are among
the best authorities extant which remain from those years on Alaskan
matters, and they were written home to Russia during his stay in the
Aleutian Islands and at Sitka. He came to Sitka after a ten-year stay at
Unalaska, remained there for five years working for the church and
teaching in the schools, then returned to Moscow and was consecrated as
bishop of the new diocese. He again arrived in Sitka in 1842, and made a
tour of all the churches in the colonies, traveling by sailing ship to
every settlement, then went home to Russia where he became Metropolite
of Moscow.

The schools of Sitka, under the Russian regime, were well maintained,
and many of the mechanics, clerks, pilots, and men of other trades were
educated there. Kadin, who drew the charts for Tebenkof's Atlas of
Alaska from the surveys made by the Russian Navigators; Tarantief, who
engraved the maps on copper-plate at Sitka; and many of the shipmasters
and accountants in the employ of the Company, were the product of the
educational institutions of Sitka. In the time of the greatest prosperity
there were five schools. The church school was advanced to the grade of
a seminary in 1849 and there were taught navigation, mathematics,
astronomy, bookkeeping, and other branches of learning. Some of the best
pupils, both Russian and Creole, were sent to St. Petersburg for more
advanced instruction. Chief Manager Etolin was the especial patron of
education, and made many improvements in the system. Under the auspices
of Madame Etolin, who was a native of Helsingfors and was educated in
the schools of that city, a school was opened and maintained by t