The Luanhe River Grand Iron Bridge

The Luanhe River Grand Iron Bridge

The Luanhe River Grand Iron Bridge is a protected cultural heritage site of Hebei Province.

The Luanhe River Grand Iron Bridge is located on the main channel of the Luanhe River in Laozhan Village, Luanzhou Town, Luan County, Tangshan City, Hebei Province. As China's first large-scale modern railway bridge, it has a history of over 120 years. It served as a critical node in railway transportation between North China and Northeast China at the time. In 1892, it was designed and constructed with the participation of China’s famous railway engineer Zhan Tianyou. In 1935, a new double-track bridge was built 45 meters upstream from it. After the new bridge was put into use, the old one was temporarily decommissioned, and after 1949, it was repurposed as a highway bridge. In May 1973, the Luan County Transportation Bureau carried out major repairs on the bridge. In 1974, after a new downstream highway bridge was put into operation, the Luanhe River Grand Iron Bridge ceased usage. In April 2013, it was announced by the State Council as part of the seventh group of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites.

The Luanhe River Grand Iron Bridge consists of three parts: the west approach bridge, the east approach bridge, and the main bridge body. It includes 16 piers, two bridge abutments, and 17 spans. Among these, there are nine spans of through-truss steel girders, each 31 meters long; five spans of deck-truss steel girders, each 64 meters long; one span of Fenglei-style steel girder, 32.2 meters long; and two spans of I-beam girders, totaling 24 meters. The total length of the bridge is 665 meters. The clear widths of the bridge deck vary, measuring 3.3 meters, 3.27 meters, 3.9 meters, and 4.5 meters respectively, with a total area of 2,660 square meters.

Regarding the length of the Luanzhou Grand Iron Bridge, it is generally considered to be 665 meters. However, according to the "Luanzhou Annals," “the Luanhe River Bridge is 217 zhang, 4 chi, and 6 cun long, 2 zhang wide, with the water surface 2 zhang and 9 chi above it. There are sixteen piers, making seventeen spans. The middle five spans are each more than 20 zhang wide, with varying widths of several zhang each. Each pier is 2 zhang and 2 chi long, and 1 zhang wide. The construction cost was 782,495 taels, 9 qian, 1 fen, and 4 li of silver.” Converted according to the Qing Dynasty measurement system, the bridge should be 695.872 meters long and 6.4 meters wide. Additionally, according to the "Beijing-Fengtian Railway Travel Guide" published in 1917, the Luanhe River Grand Iron Bridge is 330 feet long, which converts to 100.584 meters metrically — a figure that differs greatly from the actual length of the bridge. The author of the article "The Past and Present of the Luanhe River Bridge" suggests that its length is approximately 670.6 meters.

The Luanhe River Grand Iron Bridge also features Taiji diagrams, commonly known as “Yin-Yang Fish Diagrams,” carved on the north and south sides of the western bridge abutment, each with a diameter of about 1 meter. There are also four dragon decorations in total, located on the north and south sides of the eastern bridge abutment and on the east and west ends of the steel truss girders. The stone carving of a “Soaring Dragon Amid Clouds” on the eastern bridge abutment remains intact to this day. This entire stone carving is 8.5 meters long and 1.2 meters high, with the dragon’s head facing east toward the dragon pearl, its four claws leaping vividly and lifelike. The “Two Dragons Playing with a Pearl” on the steel truss girders is a copper-cast component (now missing), featuring dragons dancing and soaring with vivid and lively postures.

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Protected Cultural Heritage Sites of Hebei Province