In modern historical science, interest in studying the problems of regional history has increased. In our opinion, the most relevant of them are the study of the creation, development and functioning of different types of educational institutions, the history of socio-economic development of the regions, the study of professional employment of the population, etc. Our research interests include studying the professional status of zemstvo (country council) teachers in the Russian Empire in the second half of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. In this article, within the framework of the professional status of teachers, we will consider their social status, including the material situation (income and level of well-being), working conditions, as well as the opportunities that were provided to teachers by law.