The Baltic Timber Trade and the Port of Riga: Economic Empowerment of Middlemen and New Entrepreneurs in Imperial Russia’s Western Provinces (1860s to 1914)

Abstract The article discusses the advancement of timber traders and former middlemen in Riga’s timber trade during the second half of the 19 th and early 20 th century. Using methods from spatial history, statistical data on the Riga timber trade and archival documents from the timber trade files in the collection of the Riga Exchange Committee at the Historical State Archive of Latvia, the article traces the transport of timber from the Belarusian, Ukrainian and Russian hinterland to the port of Riga. It explains why and how timber became one of Riga’s main export commodities and highlights the actors behind the timber trade. It argues that the timber trade offered ample opportunities for new entrepreneurs of various ethnicities and shows how members of non-elite groups, especially Jewish and Latvian entrepreneurs, were able to challenge the trade monopoly of Baltic Germans in the wood sector. Using the biographies of members of three entrepreneurial families – Armitstead, Berlin, and Dombrovskis – the article explores the advancements of new entrepreneurs in Riga and their contributions to the Baltic timber trade.