Site of the Former Shanhai Customs House

Site of the Former Shanhai Customs House

The Site of the Former Shanhai Customs House is a cultural relic protection unit of Yingkou City.

The Site of the Former Shanhai Customs House is located at No. 40, Xidamiao Li, Xidamiao Community, Yushi Subdistrict Office, Xishi District, approximately 30 meters north of the Liao River. It is a modern-era customs building that represents the establishment of customs after Yingkou Port was opened. Due to its location in the western part of Yingkou’s port area, it is also known as the “West Customs.”

The jurisdiction of the West Customs covered Fengtian Prefecture, Jinzhou Prefecture, and the Shanhai Pass area, hence multiple branch offices and checkpoints were established. Its jurisdiction extended west to Xifengkou, east to Huanggutun, and south to Zhuanghe (excluding the Japanese-occupied Lushun-Dalian area). In the first year of the Republic of China (1912), the Ministry of Finance of the Republic government appointed a dedicated Shanhai Customs Supervisor in Yingkou, who was nominated by the President of the Republic. This supervisor oversaw the West Customs and supervised the operations of the East Customs. By December 1930, the Shanhai Permanent Customs had 15 tax bureaus, 3 inspection bureaus, 7 branch offices, and 47 checkpoints under its administration.

After the railway was opened, several permanent customs tax offices were added along the line. In 1900, Russian troops occupied Yingkou, and the Russian civil administration took over both the East and West Customs in Yingkou. After the Russo-Japanese War, during the Japanese occupation of Yingkou, the Japanese seized control of the East and West Customs until December 6, 1906, when they withdrew and the two customs were returned to Chinese administration.

In 1910, the West Customs purchased the property of the monk Baoshan from Tianhou Palace (Xidamiao) for 4,500 taels of Customs Tael silver, where it built its office building, cargo inspection yard, and staff residences, approximately 30 meters north of the Liao River. According to records, the building was constructed in 1900 by the American Aierlü, with design by Keluo. It was managed by the Qing government’s customs authority, hence also referred to as the “Old Customs” or “Permanent Customs,” primarily overseeing domestic coastal and inland trade by wooden sailing vessels. The structure is a two-story red brick building, with specially shaped bricks used at the corners. The interior ceiling features Western-style carvings, with bracketed eaves and a four-sloped roof. The protruding walls give a strong three-dimensional effect, reflecting a neoclassical revival style with a bright and cheerful design. The building is 22.1 meters long from north to south and 10.5 meters wide from east to west, covering an area of approximately 232 square meters.

In 2012, the Yingkou Municipal People’s Government (Ying Zheng [2012] No. 173) designated the Site of the Former Shanhai Customs House as a municipal-level cultural relic protection unit. The cultural relic protection scope and construction control zone announced by the Yingkou Municipal People’s Government (Ying Zheng [2013] No. 185) are as follows: the protection zone extends 5 meters east, west, south, and north from the outer wall base of the Site of the Former Shanhai Customs House; the Class I construction control zone extends south to the Binhe Avenue roadbed, 30 meters east, 30 meters north, and 30 meters west outside the protection zone.

Source: Municipal Bureau of Culture, Sports, News, Radio, Television and Tourism Contributor: Dong Wenjie

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