Former Residence of Zhu Kezhen in Shangyu

Former Residence of Zhu Kezhen in Shangyu

The former residence of Zhu Kezhen is a Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Unit and a patriotic education base.

The former residence of Zhu Kezhen is located at the head of Damu Bridge in Dongguan Town. The traditional courtyard house faces south with its back to the north and fronts the town river. It is now open to the public as a cultural relic protection unit of Shangyu City.

Zhu Kezhen, courtesy name Oufang, also known as Shaorong, Zhaoxiong, and Liezu, was a native of Dongguan, Shangyu. He studied successively at Tongyi School at East Lake in Shaoxing, Fudan Public School, and Tangshan Road and Mining School. In 1910, he went to the United States to study meteorology, earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1918, and returned to China. He taught geography and meteorology at Wuchang Advanced Normal School and Nanjing Advanced Normal School. In 1925, he worked at the Commercial Press in Shanghai as the director of the Compilation Department for the International Encyclopedia. A year later, he taught at Nankai University. In 1927, he was appointed director of the Meteorological Research Institute at the Academia Sinica. From April 1936, he served as president of Zhejiang University for 13 years, advocating academic democracy and valuing young talent. He was honored as one of the Four Great Presidents of Chinese universities and is recognized worldwide as a founding figure in modern geography and meteorology in China. After the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, he became vice president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He authored works such as “A Preliminary Study on Climate Changes in China over the Past Five Thousand Years.” Especially notable is that from January 1, 1936, to February 6, 1974, the day of his passing—38 years and 36 days—he kept a diary without missing a single day, recording the weather and phenology of each day, totaling over three million words. Despite holding high office after the founding of the People’s Republic, he always dressed simply and maintained deep affection for his hometown. Every time he visited Shaoxing as a NPC deputy, he would return to his old home in Dongguan.

Address: Dongguan Town, Shangyu City, Zhejiang Province

Type: Former Residence of a Celebrity

Opening Hours:

8:00-16:30

Ticket Information:

Free admission.

Zhu Kezhen (1890–1974), also known as Shaorong, Liezu, and Zhaoxiong, courtesy name Oufang, was a native of Dongguan, Kuaiji, Shaoxing (now part of Shangyu City). In the 20th year of the Guangxu reign (1894), he entered Jingyi Primary School in Dongguan Town. In May of the 31st year, he attended Tongyi School at East Lake in Shaoxing, transferred to Shanghai Zhongzhong School six months later, and then moved to Fudan Public School in the 33rd year. In the first year of the Xuantong reign (1909), he entered Tangshan Road and Mining School in Hebei, graduating the following year. Later, he was admitted as a government-sponsored student under the second “Boxer Indemnity” scholarship to study in the U.S., enrolling at the College of Agriculture at the University of Illinois, from which he graduated in the second year of the Republic of China (1913), then transferred… More detailed information about Zhu Kezhen ++

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Units