Shanghai Grand Hotel

Shanghai Grand Hotel

The Shanghai Grand Hotel is a cultural heritage site protected at the provincial level in Jiangsu Province.

The Shanghai Grand Hotel is located at No. 49 Shengli Road, Shengli Community, Lianyun Subdistrict Office, Lianyun District, Lianyungang City. Originally built in 1933 by a businessman surnamed Ma from Shanghai, it covers an area of approximately 900 square meters, with a construction area of about 900 square meters and a height of 15 meters. The building is constructed along the mountain slope and consists of two two-story structures at the front and rear, enclosing a courtyard-style complex. Wooden corridors and more than ten wooden staircases of varying sizes connect the different floors. The architectural style is a typical blend of Chinese and Western elements. The street-facing façade features European architectural design, with circular columns flanking the balconies, passageways, and both sides of the foyer. Four door and window openings on the first floor facing the street are adorned with Ionic columns. Above the main entrance, the parapet wall is designed with Corinthian columns and relief carvings of floral patterns, as well as decorations featuring traditional Chinese motifs such as the “Three Stars of Blessing, Prosperity, and Longevity.” The courtyard architecture is primarily in a traditional Chinese style, with upturned Chinese-style roof ridges, decorative elements mimicking bracket sets where floors meet, and plaques commonly seen in Chinese architecture above the windows on the second floor of the front building. Elegant spandrels and lantern-shaped ornaments are designed under the pillars and hanging fascias, while handrails and railings are intricately carved. The original doors and windows in the courtyard were of traditional Chinese lattice design. In 1945, the municipal government of Lianyungang was once housed here. In early 1949, the East China Military Control Commission established the East China Youth Cadre School here. From the 1960s to the 1990s, it served as the Third Guesthouse of the Lianyungang Municipal Government. The construction of the Shanghai Grand Hotel coincided with the development of Lianyungang Port and the opening of the Longhai Railway, and its architectural design was clearly influenced by the architectural trends of Shanghai at the time. It holds significant value for studying the urban development of Lianyungang during the Republican era, as well as for research on modern Chinese architectural art.

It was designated as part of the fourth batch of cultural heritage sites protected at the municipal level in Lianyungang in 2010, and as part of the eighth batch of cultural heritage sites protected at the provincial level in Jiangsu in 2019.

Lianyun Subdistrict: Lianyun Subdistrict Office is situated at Lianyungang Port. Originally called Laoyao, it has been known as Lianyun since 1933 (the 22nd year of the Republic of China), derived from the first characters of “Lian Island” and “Yuntai Mountain,” symbolizing “a bustling port with ships and sails as numerous as clouds, and flourishing maritime trade.” The Longhai and Lanzhou-Xinjiang railways, vital east-west arteries traversing China, extend westward from here, making Lianyun Subdistrict the eastern gateway of the New Eurasian Continental Bridge. In 2003, with the approval of the Jiangsu Provincial Government, the former Lianyungang Town was abolished and Lianyun Subdistrict was established. In February 2005, the municipal government approved the merger with the former Ta’an Subdistrict to form the new Lianyun Subdistrict.

New Lianyun Subdistrict…… More details about Lianyun Subdistrict++

Further Reading:

· Eighth Batch of Cultural Heritage Sites Protected at the Provincial Level in Jiangsu