Kniga posvyashchena biografii vydayushchegosya pervoprokhodtsa Russkoy Ameriki Timofeya Nikiticha Tarakanova. Kurskiy krepostnoy krest'yanin, T.N. Tarakanova zanimaet vazhnoe mesto v istorii Russkoy Ameriki, kak chelovek, vozglavivshiy pervuyu russkuyu ekspeditsiyu v Kaliforniyu, uchastnik mnogikh promyslovykh i issledovatel'skikh ekspeditsiy, pervyy evropeets, pobyvavshiy sredi indeytsev Oregona, aktivnyy uchastnik popytki prisoedineniya Gavayskikh ostrovov k Rossiyskoy imperii. Vpervye sdelana popytka vosstanovit' osnovnye vekhi ego biografii na shirokom istoricheskom fone burnykh sobytiy nachala XIX v. Dlya etogo ispol'zovany kak sobstvennye zapiski T.N. Tarakanova, tak i materialy indeyskikh predaniy, zapisok puteshestvennikov, issledovaniya otechestvennykh i amerikanskikh uchyenykh, neizvestnye prezhde arkhivnye dokumenty. V prilozhenii publikuyutsya redkie materialy, svyazannye s zhizn'yu i deyatel'nost'yu T.N. Tarakanova.