Seated first from the left in the front row is Petr Lukich Suprunenko.
Location: Kremenchuk
Photo provided by Oleksandr Derkach (great-grandson of P.L. Suprunenko)
The Orphans’ Court is a state institution for the management of orphans and widows. It was established in 1775 under the magistrates’ offices for merchant and bourgeois widows and orphans. It consisted of the mayor, two members of the magistrate, and the town elder. From 1864, it oversaw the guardianship and orphanage affairs of merchants, bourgeois, guild members, personal gentry, and commoners; it consisted of members elected for three years from the merchant, bourgeois, and artisan classes, chaired by the mayor. Complaints against the Orphans’ Court were first heard by provincial magistrates, then by the chambers of the civil court.
In 1818, the Orphans’ Court was granted guardianship over the orphans of the personal gentry. Since the introduction of judicial statutes, cases involving complaints against the Orphans’ Courts have been under the jurisdiction of district courts. According to current laws (Articles 1181-1185 of Vol. II, Holy Legislative Code, 1892 edition), the Orphans’ Court administers guardianship and orphanage cases for merchants, townspeople, and guild members, as well as personal gentry and commoners. The Orphans’ Court consists of members elected for three years by private assemblies of the merchant, townspeople, and artisan classes; it is presided over by the mayor or a special person elected by the city council and confirmed in office by the governor. In urban settlements where simplified public administration has been established, the presence of the city Orphans’ Court consists of two members elected by the city community, chaired by the city mayor. The jurisdiction of the city Orphans’ Court extends only to the city and county where it is established.
The following matters fall within the jurisdiction of the Orphans’ Court:
care for minor orphans and widows, their property, and affairs;
management of estates seized due to state collection;
guardianship matters for minor Jewish children settled on privately owned and privately owned lands;
audit of guardianship reports;
representation to the governor regarding the sale and mortgaging, in cases specified by law, of the property of persons under guardianship.
