PORT OF ARKHANGELSK

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00810A005000170004-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Sequence Number: 4
• Content Type: REPORT

This material contains Information affecting the Na-
tional Defense of the United States within the mean-
ing of the Espionage Laws, Title 18, U.S.C. Secs. 793
and 794, the transmission or revelation of which in
any manner to an unauthorized person is prohibited
by law.
REPORT
DATE DISTR.
NO. OF PAGES
REQUIREMENT NO. RD
REFERENCES
THE SOURCE EVALUATIONS IN THIS REPORT ARE DEFINITIVE.
THE APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE.
(FOR KEY SEE REVERSE)
followed the fiord route through the Lofoten and Vesteraalen Archipelago
and left the fiord passage near Rammerfest. On the way along the Murmansk
coast during the night. The Soviet pilot came aboard the ship rather far 25X1
out at sea in Dvina Bay.
shore. The coast was steep and barren with only a few pine trees. Watch-
towers wQLe_located along the coast at intervals of about two kilometers.
There was no searchlight activity on the Murmansk coast or the White Sea
2. The town of Arkhangelsk and the harbor district were located on numerous islands
in the mouth of the Dvina River. (See Sketches Nos. 1, 2, 3, and 4). Numerous
outlying islands passed on entering the Dvina River made it extremely difficult 25X1
for a non-resident to get a clear picture of the area. The coastal area on the
summer (sic) coast and the outlying islands seemed to consist of swamps and reeds.
There were no watchtowers or other buildings on these islands.
large stacks of lumber were stored in the harbor district and on the inner islands.
mixed with sawdust and held together by two or three layers of wooden beams, and 25X1
an uppermost layer of wooden boards held in place by spikes. Where the spikes had
worked loose, the boards would spring upwards when the trucks drove along the piers.
Several sawmills were on both sides of the Dvina River and on several of the islands.
Since only one kind of wood was loaded on each pier, 0 ship had to tie up
at three different berths to take on three different kinds of wood. The lumber was 25X1
brought on rafts to the sawmills on the Dvina River.
4, The method used to pull the lumber ashore involved a system of two poles arranged
side by side from which a long trunk projected into the water. Below the surface
of the water a band,fitted with large hooks and moved by rollers,
lifted and dropped the floating trunks on the pier. Informant saw about 20 of these
lifting devices in the harbor area.
 5. Some of the islands in the harbor area were guarded. Traffic between the is-
lands and the inner harbor or the town was maintained by ferry motor boats, each
capable of carrying about 50 persons. The ferries maintained an hourly schedule
in the evening but they ran more frequently in the daytime. The last ferry left
the inner harbor at 0100 hours and was at berth No. 26 at 1500 hours. 25X1
6. The custom house and the militia station were in an unpainted,single-story wooden
house, which was close to two lattice masts with radio antennas.
ship had to anchor off this militia station to take aboard the control commission,
which came alongside in a motorboat flying the Soviet naval ensign. The control
commission consisted of three women customs officials, two militiamen in plain
clothes, one military officer and six border guards. After being searched for
one and one-half hours, ship proceeded to its berth. An unarmed vessel
which was equipped with radio, followed the ship at a distance of 200
25X1
pier. It was carried alongside ship by special trucks which were
extremely high-legged vehicles. They moved over the piles of lumber, picked up
the lumber with their grabs and deposited it on the planks which led to the hatches
of the ship. The lumber which projected over the forward end of the truck was
placed on the sloping hatch planks, thus forming a hollow room underneath which
made it easy to fix the loading gear sling. Two hatches were served by one truck.
The trucks, which were built in Finland, could quickly go forward and backward and
had a road clearance of two meters. The piles of lumber they picked up were 1.5
meters high. In the area at the rear of the pier, the lumber was dumped in
regular piles about three meters high, with a roof over each pile. The timber was
dumped on the grass. The ground toward the back area was revetted with wooden
splinters and sawdust. Girls of between 14 and 18 years of age did this work from CB00
to 0100 hoius without being relieved. They covered the grass with a layer of wood
splinters about three-quarters of a meter high. 25X1
8. The average age of the longshoremen in the harbor was between 20 and 40 years.
They seemed well fed, but they were poorly clad, almost in rags. Their footwear
frequently consisted of old raga. A large number of them were Czechoslovakians.
Although conversation with longshoremen was forbidden, one of them stated that
they were serving a kind of voluntary compulsory service (sic). He said that
they would be happy to return to their country, but they could not hope to be
repatriated in the next fifteen years. He also said that he would get five 25X1
years at hard labor for talking to foreign sailors.
9. Intensive flying activity by transport aircraft and jet fighters was observed over
the town during the day and night. The transports were twin-engine aircraft with
a single tail unit and retractable landing?gear.On most of the aircraft there
appeared the letters USSR followed.by a figure. The aircraft approached and took off
in different directions. No particular approach courses could be determined.
10. was not impressed with Arkhangelsk. Most of the inhabitants had poor
clothing. All kinds of everyday commodities were on sale in the chop windows,
but the prices were generally very high. For example, a bottle of beer cost
between 22 and 4 rubles depending on size, a candy smelling of sugar beet
cost 50 kopeks, a glass of vodka cost 4 rubles, and a piece of cold fried fish,
about the size of a slice of white bread, with chive cost 22 rubles. A bottle
of vodka containing a. quarter of a liter cost 22 rubles, a piece of ice cost
1.25 rubles, a man's suit cost 2,500"rubles and a wrist watch cost 400 rubles.
Despite the high prices for alcoholic drinks, many persons in the streets were
drunk. they prepared alcoholic drinks at home.
25X1
11. Some German Opel sedans, 3-ton Ford-type trucks, American-type sedans and
sedans similar to the Opel Olympia, 1938-type, were observed in the streets.
All the trucks were painted green. Military motor vehicles had no particular
 12. Uniforms seen in town included the olive-green army uniforms) which were the
most frequent, and black militia uniforms with a red band around the cap. Blue
naval uniforms and the light blue uniforms of the fire service men were ob-
served in the harbor area. The fire service men also had light blue caps
with a red border. No air force personnel were observed.
13. At 1830 hours daily a bus transported sailors free of charge from the harbor
area to the International Seamen's Club which included well-furnished rooms
for various purposes. the female personnel at the club 25X
were employed for indoctrination and pro-Communist propaganda purposes.
14. At 0500 hours on 15 June 1953 after the captain of 0 ship had spent 25X
about 12 hours with the ship's broker to prepare the clearing papers, the ship
left port. The ship was again searched at the custom house, and it left Arkhangelsk
with the aid of a pilot.
tween the islands of Brevennik and Khabarka, right off berth No. 4. The ship was 25X1
obviously aground as its forward end was awash as far as amidships. The after
section with its superstructure., stack,and propellers was above water. Two tug- 25X1
boats alongside the ship were engaged in lifting the ship. Large buoys had been
laid out from which thick ropes extended through the water to the ship. Some crew
members of the half-sunken vessel were still aboard it. Since ship was 25X
tied up to berth No. 3, two berths away from the position of the wreck, 25X
could see that, a third small vessel went alongside the grounded 2bX
ship and helped 'to pump out the water. the ship was refloated and was 25X
hauled to the shipyard by two tugboats.
16. The second mate of 0 ship stated that a college for merchant marine 25X'
officers was located in Arkhangelsk. The college had a school ship which was
similar to a small passenger steamer; it was painted gray and carried the
Soviet merchant flag. this vessel left port 25X'
with many men in naval uniform aboard. 25X1
 SECRET - US OFFICIALS ONLY
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Legend to Sketch No 1 of Arkhangelsk:
1. Two watchtowers on the mainland behind Muravoy Island (N 64-48, E 40-26).
2. Approximate course of the trolley line to Solombala. This line had several
Junctions to the lumber harbor,which were served by motor rail cars with
trailers carrying lumber.
3. Mooring berth No. 26 on Linskiy Priluk Island (N 64-41, E 40-27).
4. Nikolskiy Island.
5. Sawmill.
6. Lifting gear for floating trunks.
7. Brevennik Island.
8. Large{dwelling area with plain wooden houses.
9. Small floating bridge spanning the Povrakulka River. The bridge had rails
for the trolley line.
10. Suburb of Solombala.
11. Berth No. 4.
12. Berth No. 3.
13? 19habarka Island.
14. Ostrovskiy Island.
15. Passage between Khabarka and Ostrovskiy Islands navigable for mediums-sized
merchant vessels.
16. City of Arkhangelsk.
SECRET - US OFFICIALS ONLY
 Sketch No. 1
Sketch of Arkhangelsk
ci
 SECRET - US OFFICIALS ONLY
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Legend to the Sketch of Arkhangelsk Lumber Harbor:
1. Customs and militia Station.
2. Berth No. 26.
4. A small, wooden,, tranverse building-way. There was a small scow, between
700 and 800 tons, under construction on the way.
8. Trolley line.
9. Lifting gears which hauled trunks from the river.
10. Berth of ship
11. Landing stage for the harbor ferry.
12. Swamps and reeds.
 t -it
- 11 '. -1-11-/lam
/A 1z
o X11 mi -II ,/ .//'l/ -/1
 1. Shipyards which was located between the lumber harbor and the river.
2. Concrete five-story building., about 150 meters long and 50 meters wide.
It was open on one side and accessible to vessels. Several merchant
ships were under repair in the area.
SECRET - US OFFICIALS ONLY
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Legend to the Sketch of Arkhangelsk and Solombala:
3. Four small Soviet naval vessesl, each about 30 meters long. They were
marked K-4 followed by two other figures and with a small red Soviet star
on the bow on the left-hand side over the distinguishing number. Each
vessel had a raked bow, flush deck, and a smaIl stack with a slanting top
located aft of the bridge. The bridge was fitted with a platform and
a small mast with a semicircular radar scanner. A radio antenna was located
between the stack and the bridge, and there as a cnlpaziome.y aft if tie stack. The
ship had no portlights. A light gun was located on the foredeck and two
heavy machine guns with protective shields were located behind the companion-
way. The vessels appeared to be clean and well-kept.
4. Three propeller-aesa scows, about 80 meters long and 20 meters beam,were riding
at anchor in the river. The soots had apexstnadares aft and on the uppertk. Thcy each
had a heavy mast on each side forward and aft.'Tteywere allegedly capable of trans-
porting submarines and guard boats of the type lying at the shipyard.
5. Trolley line.
6. Rail loop of the trolley line.
7. A large, wooden two-story building. Naval personnel were observed near this
building.
8. A large wooden building, apparently quartering an army unit, with soldiers
wearing army uniforms.
9.
10.
Wooden trolley car depot.
A wooden floating bridge with concrete ice aprons at the sides. The bridge
was moved by tugboats for passage of rafts :going, downstream to the Dvina
River.
11. Concrete blocks on the river banks, probably piers, for a new permanent
bridge.
12. Concrete main road to Arkhangelsk in poor condition.
13. Rail loop of the trolley line.
14. Trolley line.
15. Wooden dwelling houses and commercial buildings.
16. No'c identi^i.e7
 Sketch No. 3:
Sketch of Arkhangelsk and Solombala
 SECRET - US OFFICIALS ONLY
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Legend to the Sketch of the Main Street in Arkhangelsk
1. Main street with double-track trolley line.
2. Opera house, which was a stone building.
3. Two stadiums.
4. Five-story Party house; this was the largest building in town.
5. Park.
6. Arkhangelsk post office.
7. Militia headquarters and prison; it was guarded by sentries with black
uniforms and a red band around their caps.
8. Building of the International Seamen's Club.
9. Inflot building.
10. Landing stage for the harbor ferry.
11. River bank.
12. Quay installations and berths on island opposite the town. There were
no cranes visible in the area.
 Sketch No. 4:
Sketch of the Main Street of Arkhangelsk