The article is devoted to the analysis of the results of studies on the economic consequences of the 1861 peasant reform in the Yamburg, Gdov and Pskov districts bordering the Baltic provinces of the Russian Empire. The study was conducted with the application of statistical methods and computer technology. By the mid-nineteenth century in Estland and Livland provinces the agrarian issue has not been resolved, although serfdom no longer existed here. Since the peasants were emancipated without land, there was a high degree of social tension. The peasant unrest in Estonia influenced the process of preparing and implementing the 1861 reform. The more interesting is the question about the features of the serfs emancipation in the districts of the capital and Pskov provinces, directly adjacent to the Baltic provinces. The article gives a general description of the studied region, analyzes the degree of spread of various forms of exploitation on the eve of the reform. Adjusted data on structures of peasant allotments and payments existing in landowner farms and their transformation during reform is provided. The authors concluded that there were two parallel processes: reduction of peasants’ allotments and decrease in their payments. And the former process was noticeably ahead of the latter. Changes in the agricultural sector would lead in the following years to a widespread lease and purchase of land with the active participation of migrants from Livonia and Estonia, who came to St. Petersburg province, already possessing established skills of capitalist management.