Evstratii Delarov

Who was Evstratii Delarov?

Evstratii Ivanovich Delarov was a Greek-born mariner who served with several Russian maritime fur trade companies in Russian America. He was born in Ottoman Macedonia. He was the first documented Greek explorer and merchant to arrive in Alaska.

Delarov's career in Russian America dates to at least 1764, when he was in the Aleutian Islands on board the Petr i Pavel under Ivan Maksimovich Solov'ev. Delarov participated in Solov'ev's 1764 attacks on the Umnak-Unalaska Aleut alliance, which were carried out in revenge for the 1762 Fox Islands revolt—a coordinated Aleut attack on four Russian vessels and several shore parties, during which over 300 Russians were killed.

While serving Panov brothers company, Delarov used the harbor on Unga Island as a base of operations, which for many years the harbor was known as Delarov Harbor or Greko-Delarovskoe, because Delarov was Greek. In 1781-1786 Delarov and two other captains made exploratory forays from Unga Island into Prince William Sound.

Over time Delarov gained a reputation as an excellent skipper. He became part owner of various fur-trading vessels. Grigory Shelikhov met Delarov in Irkutsk and persuaded him to become the chief manager of his establishment at Three Saints Bay on Kodiak Island. Delarov sailed to Kodiak in 1787 aboard the Three Saints, commanded by Gerasim Grigor'ievich Izmailov. From 1787 to 1791 he was Alexander Baranov's predecessor as chief manager of the Shelikhov-Golikov Company. He later became a partner in the Shelikhov enterprises and a major shareholders. In 1796 he directed the company's affairs in Irkutsk.