Xiangyang Wharf

Xiangyang Wharf

Xiangyang Wharf is a cultural heritage site protected at the provincial level in Hubei Province.

Historically, Xiangyang Wharves were distributed along both banks of the Han River in Xiangcheng and Fancheng, totaling 31 in number. The Xiangcheng wharves were located on the southern bank of the Han River, namely Tanxi, Luojia, Lady City, Linhanmen, Guanting, Tiezhuang, Gongchen, Changmen, and Zhakou; while the Fancheng wharves were situated on the northern bank of the Han River, including Huoxingguan, Migongci, the Big Wharf, Longkou, Gongguanmen, Linjiaxiang, Zuojiaxiang, Shaojiaxiang, Wangxianting, Yujiaxiang, Mojiaxiang, Guanmatou, Zhanjimiao, Wuxianmiao, Huilongsi, Hanyang Shuyuan, Jie’aoxiang, Sujiaxiang, Hunan Guan, Madaoke, Tizikou, Yingxumen.

During the peak years of river transport, 21 small streets and alleys within Xiangyang city led directly to the riverbank wharves, with over 20 large and small shipping businesses. In the Republican era, Xiangyang reached the zenith of its waterway transport due to a thriving shipping industry. According to the *Xiangfan Transportation Annals*, around 1935 (the 24th year of the Republic of China), based on the division of labor among gang bosses, there were 11 and a half wharves along more than 5 kilometers of the Han River’s banks, including 3 in Xiangcheng and 8 and a half in Fancheng. In Xiangcheng, from Xiaobeimen in the north down to Changmen, the wharves were, in order: Xiaobeimen, Dabeimen, and Changmen. In Fancheng, from the Big Wharf down to Tizikou, they were: the Big Wharf, Gongguanmen, Yan Gongmiao, Guanmatou, Zhanjimiao, Huilongsi, Jie’aoxiang, Madaoke, and Tizikou (half a wharf). There were about a thousand dockworkers on both sides of the river.

These Xiangyang wharves stood in close succession, varied in form, and served different functions. There were dedicated passenger ferry wharves, official wharves reserved for government officials crossing the river, commercial wharves mainly used for cargo transport, military wharves primarily for defense purposes, and iron pile wharves convenient for building pontoon bridges. Commercial wharves also had relatively fixed uses—some belonged exclusively to major merchant firms, while others were specialized in transporting certain types of goods. Fancheng’s over two thousand merchant businesses dealt in a rich variety of goods annually, including mountain produce, salt, sesame, coal, timber, oil, and grain, with a total value exceeding 6 million silver dollars—equivalent to over one billion yuan in today’s terms.

Zhongshan Qianjie (Front Street) and Zhongshan Houjie (Back Street), located right behind the wharves, were the city’s most bustling commercial districts at the time. In the 1940s, Qianjie was entirely paved with bluestone slabs. Soap factories, soy sauce workshops, silk shops, jewelry stores, pharmacies, and salt merchants stood in close rows, offering a dazzling array of goods, most of which were transported via the Han River. Teahouses, restaurants, and various stalls crowded both riverbanks, alive with noise and excitement, resembling a vibrant street market. “By day, a thousand oarsmen ply their poles; by night, ten thousand lamps cast their glow.” One can imagine: masts densely lining the river, trackers crowding the embankments, the rhythmic shouts of boat trackers echoing for miles, small boats ferrying to larger ones, and large vessels docking at the wharves.

According to the *Xiangyang Prefecture Annals*, the earliest Xiangyang wharves were earthen slopes. The existing wharves were reconstructed in 1828 (the 8th year of the Daoguang reign in the Qing Dynasty) under the direction of Xiangyang Prefect Zheng Dunyun, who replaced the original earthen slopes with stone-step wharves, some of which also featured ceremonial archways. Due to historical reasons, the architectural facilities on the wharves were successively dismantled, leaving only the wharf structures themselves.

In 2008, Xiangyang Wharf was designated as a provincial-level cultural heritage site by the provincial government.