In 1845, an educational institution opened in Irkutsk, originally called the Girls' Institute of Eastern Siberia. In 1896, it was renamed the Irkutsk Institute named after Emperor Nicholas I in honor of the centenary of his birth. This was the first secondary women's educational institution in Siberia. The initiator of its creation was Governor-General V.Ya. Rupert, who in 1840 presented a draft charter for the institute, justifying its necessity for the education of the daughters of noble officials. His idea found support among gold miners such as E.A. Kuznetsov, P.V. Golubkov, N.F. Myasnikov, and A.Ya. Nemchinov.

The education at the institute lasted 6 years, and from 1892, 7 years. The class numbering was reversed: starting from the 7th grade and finishing with the 1st. Grades were given on a system of: "excellent", "good", "very good", "fairly good", "mediocre", without twos and ones. The day of the students was strictly planned: wake-up at 6 AM, prayer, breakfast, lessons starting at 9 AM, lunch at 12, rest, then classes again until dinner at 6 PM, evening prayer, and sleep. The girls were taught the Law of God, sciences, languages, music, dancing, singing, drawing, gymnastics, and handicrafts.

The institute accepted not only noblewomen but also the daughters of priests, merchants, and officials. Graduates could work as governesses, teachers, or class ladies. Due to their white aprons and capes, they were called "white swans".

In 1917, the building of the institute found itself in the center of the fighting during the Civil War. In 1918, it was transferred to the university, and the students were moved to an Orphanage, where they learned to work and went to the forest for timber. In the autumn of 1918, with the arrival of Kolchak's authority, the students returned to the institute for a year. At the end of 1919, the building housed Kolchak's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

On September 1, 1920, the People's University was closed, and the building was transferred to Irkutsk State University for educational purposes. Currently, this building houses the Institute of Mathematics, Economics, and Informatics and the Faculty of Physics of Irkutsk State University.