Santan Academy

Santan Academy

Santan Academy is a cultural relic protection unit of Hunan Province.

Santan Academy is located atop a hill in Jixin Town, Fenghuang County. The main building stands majestically with soaring upturned eaves and intricately carved beams and painted rafters. Behind it lies a traditional quadrangle courtyard with a central open space, surrounded by corridors, railings, classrooms, and dormitories, all laid out symmetrically in a highly structured design. The courtyard is adorned with lush flowers and trees, creating a tranquil and elegant atmosphere, while outside the courtyard, ancient cypress trees tower overhead and sweet osmanthus fragrances waft through the air. In the 11th year of the Tongzhi reign (1872) of the Qing Dynasty, Miao gentry Wu Zifa (who was then serving as the Guizhong Military Defense Commissioner) and others donated 80,000 taels of silver to establish the academy, initially naming it "Xinwu." It was completed in the 13th year of Tongzhi (1874). In the 6th year of the Guangxu reign (1880), Wu Zifa returned home to visit his family. When he climbed to the academy and looked down, he saw three green pools formed by the Wanrong River at the foot of the mountain, prompting him to rename the academy "Santan" (Three Pools). The academy covers an area of 12,000 square meters, with the current built-up area being 600 square meters.

History

In the 13th year of the Tongzhi reign (1874) of the Qing Dynasty, Wu Zifa (also known as Chengzhai), the Guizhong Military Defense Commissioner of Guizhou, returned to his hometown for a family visit (Wu was from Deshengying). During conversations with relatives and old friends, he expressed deep regret about his own lack of education and voiced strong concern about the backward cultural conditions and the coexistence of Miao and Han peoples in his native place. Determined to improve the situation, he resolved to establish an educational institution in his hometown to nurture talent and enhance the cultural quality of the local youth.

The Qing imperial court had once allocated a sum of silver as compensation for soldiers who died in battles against ethnic minorities, part of which went unclaimed. In the late years of the Tongzhi reign, Wu Zifa transported this unclaimed silver back to Fenghuang. He used it to build an academy on a hill above the Three Pools (namely Yangliu Pool, Luobo Pool, and Qishu Pool) of the Wanrong River in Deshengying, naming it "Santan Academy." The remaining funds from the construction were used to purchase 160 mu of farmland for the academy, which served as its endowment property.

In 1914, the people of Deshengying renamed the academy "Cuncheng School" in memory of Wu Chengzhai. After the county government ordered a restructuring, the unified 10th Primary School was also established on the same campus. Thus, the "County No. 10 Primary School" and "Cuncheng" operated side by side. Due to the increasing number of students and insufficient school buildings, more than ten additional classrooms were constructed. Students were divided into senior and junior sections. At that time, teachers’ salaries, students’ books, lamp oil, and subsidies for students from poor families were all provided by the school. In the spring of 1937, the "County No. 10 Primary School," "Cuncheng," and the County No. 2 Girls' Primary School in the same region merged into the County No. 4 Primary School, still located at Santan Academy. In 1940, the "No. 4 Primary School" was renamed "Weiwén Township Central Primary School." After the liberation, it was called Jixin Complete Primary School.

Since its establishment, Santan Academy has achieved remarkable educational results and produced many talented individuals. Xiao Jimei, the current "Steel Doctor" professor at Tsinghua University and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, received his early education here.

Jixin Town: Jixin Town is located in the northeast of Fenghuang County, 21.5 kilometers from the county seat. Following the 2005 administrative division adjustment, the former Huoluoping Township and Liangtouyang Township were merged into Jixin Town. The town covers a total area of 116.51 square kilometers, governs 21 administrative villages and one neighborhood committee, with a total of 4,638 households and a population of 21,800. It is a multi-ethnic area inhabited by Tujia, Miao, Han, and Hui peoples.

The town enjoys convenient transportation, with National Highway 209 running from north to south, serving as a major route connecting Xiangxi Prefecture with Huaihua City and Tongren Prefecture in Guizhou. The terrain is higher in the west and lower in the east, with an average elevation between 310 and 430 meters... More details about Jixin Town++