The Siberian food chief whose name is one letter away from a Politburo member
His surname is Koganovich, while the Politburo member Lazar Kaganovich spelled his Kaganovich. That one letter is why the initial-less "Kaganovich" in the list of the 46 is so often misread.
Born in Kostroma, he joined the RSDLP in 1905 and was arrested several times before the revolution. He took part in establishing Soviet power in Kostroma in 1917 and worked in food procurement during the civil war. From April 1920 he chaired the Siberian Food Committee and sat on the Siberian Revolutionary Committee with a deciding vote. In 1927 he joined the Left Opposition and signed the platform of the 83. He was arrested on 20 June 1937, sentenced to death by the Supreme Court on 17 March 1938, shot the same day, and rehabilitated on 10 July 1958. Annotated editions of the Declaration of 46 identify him as the initial-less "Kaganovich" in the list of signatories. He is not Lazar Kaganovich, who at the time headed the organizational-instruction department of the Central Committee.
Career Timeline
- 1905Joined the RSDLP
- 1917Took part in establishing Soviet power in Kostroma
- 1920–1922Chairman, Siberian Food Committee; member, Siberian Revolutionary Committee
- 1927Joined the Left Opposition, signed the platform of the 83
- 1937Arrested
- 1938Sentenced to death by the Supreme Court and shot
- 1958Rehabilitated