Former Site of the Foundling Home

Former Site of the Foundling Home

The former site of the Foundling Home is a cultural relic protection unit of Wenzhou City.

The former site of the Wenzhou Foundling Home is located at No. 230 Guangchang Road, Lucheng District, Wenzhou City. It faces south and consists of a courtyard complex made up of a gatehouse, main building, and two side wings. The gatehouse has five single-story rooms with a brick façade and wooden structure. It features a flush gable roof covered with small blue tiles. The central bay serves as a passageway, with a brick gate platform outside adorned in Western decorative style. The main building has seven bays across two stories, with a brick façade and internal brick walls, supported by wooden columns. The central bay on the first floor serves as a passageway, with a white-painted ceiling featuring strip patterns. The rear section connects to the second floor via stairways. The roof is a four-ridge design. The eastern and western side bays, both on the first and second floors, have front porches. Brick railings with diamond-shaped geometric cutouts are installed. The front side wings were originally corridors but now house single-story brick rooms. The corridor walls once held several stone steles, which are no longer visible. The rear two side wings are buildings with internal wooden structures and external brick walls. Both floors have corridors. The roofs are flush gable types, covered with small blue tiles. Currently, two bluestone steles are embedded in the east and west courtyard walls of the front yard. The Yongjia Foundling Home was established in the 12th year of the Qianlong reign during the Qing Dynasty (1747), originally comprising 99 rooms, with additions made during the Tongzhi era. It was rebuilt in the 8th year of the Republic of China (1919), under the jurisdiction of Ou Hai Dao, managing foundling-related affairs in the Wenzhou area. In the 19th year (1930), it came under the administration of the Yongjia Relief Institute and was renamed the “Foundling Institute.” This property served as the site of the Foundling Home during the Republican era and holds significant historical importance. It was listed as one of the first batch of Wenzhou Cultural Relic Protection Sites in 1991.

Protection Level: County (City/District)-level Cultural Relic Protection Unit

Period: Republican Era

Date of Designation: June 11, 2010

Category: Important Modern Historical Sites and Representative Buildings

Protective Boundary: Defined by the existing surrounding wall.

Building Control Zone: Extending 40 meters outward from the protective boundary.

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Relic Protection Units in Wenzhou City