Century Harmony Historical and Cultural Exhibition Hall

Century Harmony Historical and Cultural Exhibition Hall

The Century Harmony Historical and Cultural Exhibition Hall is a patriotic education base.

To enrich and expand patriotic education resources and enhance the level of patriotic education, Yihé Town began constructing the Historical and Cultural Exhibition Hall in July 2012, which opened to the public free of charge in June 2013. Since the town has a history of one hundred years since people first settled there in 1910, it was named the Century Harmony Historical and Cultural Exhibition Hall.

The land of Yihé is a miraculous newly formed alluvial plain created by the shifting course of the Yellow River. Settled since 1900, over the past century, the land of Yihé has evolved from initial prosperity and abundance, through bloody devastation and plunder by Japanese invaders, reactionary troops, and bandits, to the establishment of a government under the leadership of the Communist Party. Especially after the founding of New China and the reform and opening-up, the land of Yihé has undergone earth-shaking changes, composing moving chapters of development. How to showcase the century-long transformation of Yihé, how to comprehensively present the heroic aspirations of the industrious people of Yihé in safeguarding their homeland and building their homes, how to create a base for revolutionary tradition education, and how to build the cultural brand of Yihé have become important tasks at present.

The primary purpose of establishing the Century Harmony Exhibition Hall is to inspire the broad masses of cadres and people to remember history, never forget national humiliation, strive for strength, and actively engage in the construction of a new socialist countryside. At the same time, in conjunction with the planning and construction of the Century Harmony Historical and Cultural Exhibition Hall, efforts are made to explore, integrate, and reshape Yihé’s own cultural highlights, promote the construction of an "industrial and trade-strong town, ecological new town, and happy large town," and facilitate the sound and rapid sustainable development of local culture and economy.

The Century Harmony Historical and Cultural Exhibition Hall is located in Yihé Jiayuan, Yihé Town, Hekou District, Dongying City. It is a two-story building with a construction area of 470 square meters, including an exhibition hall investment of 800,000 yuan. The exhibition hall is planned according to the chronological development of Yihé and includes nine sections: The Alluvial Land of the Great River, Years of Turbulence, Flames of War, —, Indomitable Spirit, Harmonious Progress, Future Prospects, Portraits of Generals, and Care from Leaders. Prefaces and concluding remarks are respectively displayed at the front and back of the exhibition hall. Each section is both independent and interconnected. In addition, the hall is equipped with a large number of photos, physical objects, and videos to provide a visual and comprehensive display.

The first section, The Alluvial Land of the Great River, mainly introduces the formation time of the land of Yihé, its earliest settlers, the origin of some of the earliest villages such as Yihé Village, and the prosperous and harmonious scenes of Yihé in those days.

The second section, Years of Turbulence, mainly describes how the prosperity of Yihé attracted bloody devastation and plunder by Japanese invaders, reactionary troops, and bandits, and details the horrifying Yihé Village Massacre orchestrated by the Japanese.

The third section, Flames of War, mainly introduces how, in late September 1941, the Third Brigade of the Shandong Column crossed the Yellow River northward, liberated Yihé Village, developed revolutionary armed forces here, established party organizations, and coordinated with the Qinghe troops to fight the enemy, making Yihé Village a rear base at that time.

The fourth section — mainly introduces how, after liberation, the people of Yihé and the army actively reclaimed land for farming, carried out the Great Production Movement, supported frontline combat, engaged in military support work, and made special contributions to achieving national victory in the War of Resistance and the liberation of all of China;

The fifth section, Indomitable Spirit, mainly describes how, after the liberation of the whole country, the people of Yihé, like the rest of the nation, went through the land reform movement, the Korean War, three years of natural disasters, the General Line, the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, and other movements, during which life once reached the brink of collapse. However, the indomitable people of Yihé actively carried out production self-rescue, overcame numerous difficulties, and finally emerged from the hardships. The sixth section, Harmonious Progress, mainly introduces how, after the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee, successive party committees and governments united and led the broad masses of cadres and people in the town to forge ahead in harmony, resulting in social stability, economic prosperity, and a continuously improving standard of living for the people. The seventh section, Future Prospects, outlines the development plans of Yihé Town for the next few years and depicts a grand blueprint for its future. The eighth section, Portraits of Generals, introduces the deeds of generals at the division level and above who fought or worked in Yihé. The ninth section, Care from Leaders, showcases photo materials of visits to Yihé by leaders at various levels who have shown high concern for its development.