Former Site of Hengyuanchang Factory

Former Site of Hengyuanchang Factory

The former site of Hengyuanchang Factory is a cultural heritage conservation unit of Jiangsu Province.

The former site of Hengyuanchang Factory is located at No. 141 Sanbao Street, Zhonglou District, Changzhou City, within Canal No. 5 Creative Block (formerly the site of the Fifth Woolen Mill of Changzhou), north of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. It preserves Republican-era buildings such as offices and old factory workshops, covering an area of 346.375 square meters. The office building is situated at the entrance gate and was originally built in 1936. It was burned down during the Anti-Japanese War and rebuilt in 1946. The building faces south toward the canal, with a width of five bays and a depth of three sections. It has a total width of 21 meters and a total depth of 45 meters, with an additional 1.58-meter-wide veranda on the west side. The total site area is 1,000 square meters, and the building area is 998 square meters. The first section features a brick-and-wood structure with two stories, a depth of 10.6 meters, an eave height of 6.7 meters, and a ridge height of 9.8 meters. Each bay is 3.8 meters wide, with the eastern side serving as a staircase area that is 1.46 meters wide. This section overall reflects the architectural style of traditional Jiangnan residences, featuring a double-sloped roof and a flush gable roof, while western decorative elements such as Roman columns and window/door moldings were added, along with the use of "A-shaped" beams in the structure, reflecting distinct characteristics of the era. The second and third sections are integrated into one single-story brick-concrete structure, 19.5 meters wide and 18.5 meters deep, supported by cement pillars in the middle, originally used as workshops. There is a courtyard between the first and second sections, with a depth of 4.9 meters. The old factory workshop is located southeast of the office building, originally built in 1936 as a wool spinning workshop. The original structure had 66 rooms, covering an area of 2,022 square meters, with only 2 rooms remaining today, covering 76 square meters. The predecessor of Hengyuanchang Factory was the Sanhe Cloth Mill, established in 1932 by three individuals—Tang Mengxi, Jing Chunsheng, and Fei Ding’an—who were timber shop owners. The mill was located on Sanbao Street by the ancient canal outside the west gate of Changzhou city, mainly producing 40-yard fine white cloth and white twill cloth. In 1933, Mao Xizhang, owner of the Runyuan Dyed Cloth Shop, took over the Sanhe Cloth Mill and renamed it “Hengyuan Cloth Mill,” with the character “Yuan” taken from the original name of the Runyuan Dyed Cloth Shop. After taking over, Mao not only wove cloth but also engaged in dyeing. Later, the character “Chang” (meaning “prosperous”) was added to the factory name, symbolizing flourishing development and enduring legacy, and it was renamed Hengyuanchang Dyeing & Weaving Co., Ltd. By 1937, before the Japanese occupation of Changzhou, Hengyuanchang Factory entered a golden age of development, employing 450 workers, operating 224 looms, and covering a factory area of 2,100 square meters. Its production scale continued to expand, and its product range grew, with trademarks such as “Tongying” registered. In addition to running the textile mill, Hengyuanchang Factory also successively operated the Dingyuan Yarn & Cloth Store and Dingyuan Grocery Store for sales, and established a regional office in Shanghai—the Shanghai Shen Zhuang Business Office. Gradually, Hengyuanchang Factory developed into a leading enterprise in Changzhou’s weaving industry. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, Hengyuanchang Factory became a joint public-private enterprise. In September 1966, it was nationalized and renamed State-Owned Changzhou Fifth Cotton Mill. In 1980, it was renamed Changzhou Fifth Woolen Mill. In 2010, after renovation, the former site of Hengyuanchang Factory was transformed into Canal No. 5 Creative Block, centered around the three themes of “Canal Culture, Industrial Heritage, and Creative Industry.” It now hosts exhibitions on historical culture and intangible cultural heritage, becoming a successful example of the protection and utilization of modern industrial heritage in Jiangsu Province, as well as an important witness to the development and transformation of Changzhou’s national textile industry.

On February 26, 2008, the office building and old factory workshop of Hengyuanchang Factory were designated as municipal-level cultural heritage conservation units by the Changzhou Municipal People’s Government. On December 19, 2011, the former site of Hengyuanchang Factory was designated as a provincial-level cultural heritage conservation unit by the Jiangsu Provincial People’s Government.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of Jiangsu Provincial Cultural Heritage Conservation Units