Milkovo

Milkovo lies in the valley of the Kamchatka River, where the Imcherek joins the greater waterway. The valley has long been home to Itelmen communities, whose settlements included Iromlin and Kirgen. Wooded ground and rivers distinguish this interior part of the peninsula from the volcanic ridges that rise on either side.

In 1698 Cossacks built the Upper Kamchatka fort in the river valley. Several decades later the Russian authorities sought to establish farming on the peninsula. In 1743 five peasant families brought from the Lena country settled on the Imcherek near the fort. Their village became known as Milkovo, and the small river acquired the name Milkovushka. The settlers lived close to the Itelmen population of the valley, exchanging goods and knowledge with their neighbours.