Former Site of the U.S. Military Barracks

Former Site of the U.S. Military Barracks

The Former Site of the U.S. Military Barracks is a cultural tourism attraction.

The original Tianjin U.S. Military Barracks were located on No. 5 Street in the former German Concession of Tianjin (now No. 1 Guangdong Road, Hexi District), and this building is currently a historically protected architectural landmark of special significance. It now houses Tianjin Medical University.

Initially, the original Tianjin U.S. Military Barracks were built in 1910 and located at the intersection of Boro Road and Hai Road in the British Concession of Tianjin (now No. 1 Yantai Road at the intersection of Yantai Road and Dagu North Road). After World War I, in 1917, the U.S. barracks were relocated from their original site to No. 23 Road in the former German Concession of Tianjin (now No. 26 Jiujiang Road). The main building served as the dormitory for American officers. At that time, prominent American military strategists, politicians, and diplomats such as General of the Army George Catlett Marshall, General Joseph Stilwell—Commander of U.S. Forces in China and Chief of Staff to the Allied Command in the China Theater, General Albert Coady Wedemeyer—Chief of Staff to the Allied Command in the China Theater and Commander of U.S. Forces in China, and Colonel David D. Barrett—leader of the U.S. Army Observation Group (the Dixie Mission) in Yan'an—resided here successively. In 1941, after the outbreak of the Pacific War, Japan occupied the U.S. barracks. In 1945, after Japan's surrender, the U.S. military continued to lease the site until August 1946. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the building was repurposed as the Tianjin Health School. Through several adjustments, mergers, and reorganizations, it is now the Guangdong Road Campus of Tianjin Medical University.

The original Tianjin U.S. Military Barracks covered an area of 205 hectares. The barracks compound included a large parade ground and several Western-style buildings, with a total construction area of 3,500 square meters. The main building was a three-story brick-and-wood hybrid structure with a basement. Its exterior featured semicircular turrets, square windows, and arched doorways. The walls were painted in light gray cement. The roof had a helmet-style overhanging design.

Liu Guanying (1858–1927), courtesy name Duncheng, also known as Ziying or Ziyin, was a native of Min County (now Minhou). In the first year of the Guangxu reign during the Qing Dynasty (1875), he entered the Naval Academy of the Fuzhou Shipyard, studying navigation. In the twelfth year of Guangxu (1886), he was sent to the Royal Naval College in Greenwich, England. He returned to China in the sixteenth year of Guangxu (1890) and served as executive officer and first lieutenant aboard the Beiyang Fleet’s warship Jingyuan. In the twentieth year of Guangxu (1894), the First Sino-Japanese War broke out. On August 18 of that year, the Chinese and Japanese fleets engaged in fierce battle in the Yellow Sea. The Jingyuan sustained heavy damage and retreated to the vicinity of Dalu Island in Dadonggou... More details about Liu Guanying ++

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Tianjin Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Units