Former Site of Jiangxi Provincial Library

Former Site of Jiangxi Provincial Library

The former site of Jiangxi Provincial Library is a cultural relic protection unit of Jiangxi Province.

Era: 1930s

Type: Important Modern Historical Site and Representative Architecture

Address: No. 71 Zhongshan Road, Nanchang City

Introduction:

The former site of Jiangxi Provincial Library is located at No. 71 Zhongshan Road, Nanchang City. Its planning began in December 1920. In October 1927, the Provincial Department of Education designated the Zhang, Jiang, and Shen Ancestral Halls in Baihuazhou as the library’s location, resulting in a shrine-style library building. In August 1928, the provincial government approved the construction of the Provincial Library on the site of the Baihuazhou Ancestral Halls. The new library covered an area of 3,300 square meters, with the library building itself designed to be 1,100 square meters. In August 1930, the new library building was completed. Along with the Jiangxi Grand Hotel and the post office in Nanchang city at that time, it was known as one of the “Three Great Architectural Landmarks of Republican-Era Nanchang.” Today, this five-story European-style building has been largely preserved.

On February 27, 1933, under Chiang Kai-shek’s directive of “pacifying the domestic front before resisting foreign aggression,” the government abandoned resistance against Japanese invasion forces and established the “Nanchang Headquarters of the Military Affairs Commission” in Nanchang, unifying military and political command over seven provinces—Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian, Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, and Anhui—and redrawing military plans to “encircle and suppress” Soviet areas. The headquarters of the Nanchang Field Headquarters was set up inside the Baihuazhou Provincial Library.

After the establishment of the Nanchang Field Headquarters, Chiang Kai-shek worked and resided in the front building, while the rear library building continued to house books. The front building of the Provincial Library was bombed by Japanese aircraft during the War of Resistance and was rebuilt in 1947 at the original design using 9,000 bags of flour funded by the Jiangxi Relief Office. The lotus pond, revetment, and dock in front of the building were filled in.

In December 2006, it was listed as part of the fifth batch of provincial-level cultural relic protection units in Jiangxi Province.

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Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of Jiangxi Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Units