Pokrovsky Aleksander (1893–1944) – historian.
In 1912, he finished the Borisoglebskaya Aleksandrovskaya Gymnasium and enrolled at the Historical Department of the Historical and Philological Faculty of the St. Petersburg University; he graduated from it in October 1917. Additionally, he passed through exams on the position of teacher of history. From the autumn 1917 till March 1935, he taught at several secondary schools of Petrograd/Leningrad.
He taught at the Petrograd State University from November 9, 1917 till October 1, 1924; in 1924-1929, he worked at various institutions – made lectures and research in the field of social studies. In 1925-1926, he headed the Anti-Religious Cabinet of the Central Museum of Visual Aids. From January 1, 1929, on the invitation of N. M. Matorin, he became Docent and Secretary of a commission of the cycle for the history of religion at the Faculty of Language and Material Culture of the Leningrad State University. Since 1929, he was Docent and Deputy Head of the Chair of the History of Religion of the Leningrad Historical and Linguistic Institute; the head of the chair was N. M. Matorin. At the same period, he was Docent and Head of the Chair of the History of Religion of the Herzen State Teachers-Training Institute (October 1, 1931 – 1933). He was also Director on Research of the Museum of the History of Religion (since 1932).
After the arrest and exile of N. M. Matorin (January 1953), P. was fired out of the Museum of the History of Religion (March 10, 1935), a bit later – of the Leningrad State University; on April 27, 1935, he was excluded from the Communist Party. On October 16, 1935, on the recommendation of the Leningrad Regional Committee of the Unions of High School and Research Institutes Personnel, P. was hired as Senior Librarian of the Library of the Ac. of Sc. of the U.S.S.R.
He was arrested on August 29, 1936, in the frames of the N. M. Matorin Affair; on September 10, 1926, he was sentenced for five years of camps; in 1936-1944, he was in the Ukhto-Pechersky, Vorkuta, and Inta camps; he died in the camp – vil. Adak, Inta District, Komi A.S.S.R.; rehabilitated in 1955. In 1996, there was a memorial cross set on the palce of his burial.