Ayan, Russia
| Ayan (English) Аян (Russian) |
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| - Rural locality - Selo |
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.svg) Location of Khabarovsk Krai in Russia |
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 Ayan
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| Administrative status (as of 2010) | |
| Country | Russia |
| Federal subject | Khabarovsk Krai |
| Administrative district | Ayano-Maysky District |
| Administrative center of | Ayano-Maysky District |
| Statistics | |
| Population (2010 Census) | 967 inhabitants |
| Time zone | VLAT (UTC+10:00) |
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Ayan (Russian: Аян) is a rural locality (a selo) and the administrative center of Ayano-Maysky District of Khabarovsk Krai, Russia, located on the shore of a well-protected bay of the Sea of Okhotsk, 1,447 kilometers (899 mi) from Khabarovsk and 631 kilometers (392 mi) by sea from Nikolayevsk-on-Amur. Population: 967 (2010 Census);1,325 (2002 Census);2,039 (1989 Census).
Around 1840, a decision was made to move the Russian-American Company base from Okhotsk 270 miles (430 km) down the coast to Ayan, because Okhotsk stands on a river mouth protected by a sand bar and is subject to flooding while Ayan is on a circular bay on the south side of a peninsula and can be entered without waiting for a proper wind. The area was poor in fish and shipbuilding timber, but there was said to be a coal deposit nearby. A survey was done in 1840 and work started in 1843 under Vasily Zavoyko of the Russian-American Company. In 1845, an overland route was established to Yakutsk. Several expeditions went south from Ayan to explore the Amur region. In 1849, the naval center was again shifted to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Zavoyko became governor there.
American and Russian whaleships cruised for bowhead and gray whales off Ayan between 1854 and 1866. They also entered the port for repairs and supplies as well as for shelter from storms. In September 1856, the ship Alexander Coffin (381 tons), Capt. Isaiah Purrington, of New Bedford, was condemned and sold at auction in Ayan. On 10 August, the vessel had run aground Makanrushi during a heavy fog. She was refloated and had to be jury-rigged to reach the port. All the crew and cargo were saved.
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