Suzhou Wulong Bridge

Suzhou Wulong Bridge

Suzhou Wulong Bridge is a cultural heritage site protected by the Suzhou Municipal Government.

Wulong Bridge is located in Changqiao Township in southern Suzhou, within the boundaries of Longqiao Community. According to an 84-year-old resident surnamed Lu from Wulong Village, this area was once a bustling market town with a thriving commerce scene. The old street of the town was situated along the eastern bank of Xitang River (also known as Dalonggang or ? Pond), right at the eastern end of Wulong Bridge. Starting from Tantai Lake and heading north along Xitang River, the entire old street was lined with all kinds of shops and businesses. Before the liberation, the town had stores such as produce markets, fresh fish shops, rice dealers, incense and candle shops, building material stores, and barbershops. People from central Suzhou often came here to buy fresh aquatic products. Just a bit north of the eastern end of Wulong Bridge was a ferry terminal, which served as the waterway connection between Lishu and Suzhou back in those days. The southern end of the old street in Longqiao Town met the main channel of the Grand Canal. In those years, Tantai Lake had wide and rough waters, and there was no bridge across the lake—only a ferry crossing. Villagers from Lishu on the south side often took the ferry to come to the market in Longqiao Town. It is said that if you told the ferryman who you were going to visit on the other side of the lake, he would waive the fare—a sign of the simple and honest folkways of the time. The elderly man also told me that if you walk onto Changqiao and look to the west on the southern bank, you can still see the remains of the old ferry waiting shelter.