Relations between the Soviet Union and the United States of America are attracting widespread attention these days. We all talk, think and argue a lot about the present and future of this relationship and surprisingly know little about their past. Indeed, how did the first diplomatic, trade and socio-political ties between Russia and the United States develop and develop? How did early scientific and cultural contacts between the peoples of these countries begin? What did they know and wrote about America in Russia in the 18th - early 19th centuries. and how did they treat the Russian people in the United States at that time? What, finally, are the main lessons of Russian-American relations and how can the experience of studying them be useful for our time?