Shijia Hutong

Shijia Hutong

Shijia Hutong is located in the southeastern part of Dongcheng District, stretching from Chaoyangmen Nanchejie in the east to Dongsi Nandajie in the west, connecting to Dongluoquan and Xiluoquan Hutongs to the south, and adjacent to Neiwubu Street to the north. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Chaoyangmen Subdistrict Office. Legend has it that the hutong was named after a prominent local family surnamed Shi.

Shijia Hutong belonged to Huanghua Fang during the Ming Dynasty and to the Bordered White Banner in the Qing Dynasty. In 1965, during a citywide rectification of street names, Jinghua and Guanxue Dayuan were incorporated into it. During the Cultural Revolution, it was briefly renamed "18th Ruijin Road" before reverting to its original name.

The architecture in this hutong is neat and the houses are relatively well-built, mostly consisting of large traditional courtyard homes. According to longtime residents, Liu Fu-cheng, chairman of the Bank of China and France during the late Qing Dynasty, and the famous courtesan Sai Jinhua (also known as Fu Caiyun), both had residences here. No. 51 of the hutong was the former home of Mr. Zhang Shizhao. After the Xinhai Revolution, Zhang served as Minister of Education. In 1949, he participated in the Beijing Peace Talks as a member of the Nanjing Nationalist Government delegation. When the Nationalist government refused to sign the domestic peace agreement, he went to Hong Kong. He later returned to Beijing to attend the First Plenary Session of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, after which his entire family also moved to Beijing. They initially stayed at the home of Zhu Qiqian on Dongsi Batiao, but due to the large size of both families, the living space was rather cramped. In 1959, while visiting Zhang Shizhao, Premier Zhou Enlai noticed the issue and personally intervened to resolve the housing problem. Mrs. Zhang selected No. 51 Shijia Hutong, a traditional three-courtyard compound. Zhang Shizhao felt the entire compound was too large for his family and thus gave up the third courtyard. After Zhang's death, his family continued to live there. In 1984, it was designated as a cultural heritage site under Dongcheng District protection. At No. 55 of the hutong, the gate and screen wall feature brick carvings and a poem by a prince, along with couplets on both sides.

Location

Chaoyangmen Nanchejie, Dongcheng District, Beijing

Chaoyangmen Subdistrict: Chaoyangmen Subdistrict (Chaoyangmen Jiedao) is situated in the southeastern part of Dongcheng District. It covers an area of 1.24 square kilometers, with a permanent population of 40,100 (as of the end of 2006). It governs 9 communities (as of the end of 2007). The subdistrict office is located at No. 38 Dafangjia Hutong, postal code 100010. Code: 110101007: ~001 Shijia Community ~002 Neiwu Community ~003 Yanle Community ~005 Lishi Community ~006 Chaonei Tiaotiao Community ~007 Chaoxi Community ~009 Zhugan Community...  More detailed information about Chaoyangmen Subdistrict++