The article examines religious exile to Yakut area in the middle of the XIX century. Orthodox clergy was sent into exile for various crimes and offenses as well as represent-atives of religious sects. Historical sources put into scientific circulation for the first time help reveal the number, age composition, the reasons for the exile of the Orthodox clergy, difficulties of their stay in Yakutsk. The role that Archbishop Innocent (Veniaminov) played in determining the fate of the exiled is shown. A short description of the exiled sectarian including Skoptsy, Old Believers and Dukhobors is given. They turned out to be successful in agriculture and trade and had some influence on the development of these fields proving that it is quite possible to practice agriculture in harsh climatic conditions. The number of sectarians living in Yakutia at the end of the XIX century is determined.