This paper discusses how the composition of the public sphere(s) in the Russian Empire changed as a result of the revolutionary situation around 1905 and the opening of the State Duma in 1906, focusing on teachers in the provincial cities. Teachers and education officials in public schools played a crucial role in supporting and expanding the official public sphere, while also engaging in local educational activities. However, in the turmoil of 1905-1906 the “political” activity of the officials was banned, and, due to the authorities' distrust of local intellectuals, teachers were excluded from local public activities. The paper will examine the case of Nizhegorod and compare it with the cases of the western borderlands
