Dachang Ancient Town

Dachang Ancient Town

Dachang Ancient Town in Wushan County, Chongqing, is located north of the Yangtze River, along the middle reaches of the Daning River and within the Lesser Three Gorges scenic area. Departing from Wuxi County and traveling by boat down the Daning River for over two hours, the endpoint of the new Lesser Three Gorges tour is this ancient town nestled against mountains and water, shaded by greenery, with its blue walls and black tiles.

The ancient town of Dachang lies in a flatland within the Wu Mountains. Over 1,700 years ago, the ancestors of Dachang built the town here. The Daning River and the Yangxi River converge in the flatland, depositing thousands of acres of fertile land, rich in rice production. The mighty Daning River connects downstream to the Yangtze and upstream to Zhenping in Shaanxi and Zhuxi in Hubei. In an era when waterways dominated transportation and warlords vied for dominance, Dachang was a strategic “throat” location.

After disembarking from the ferry and ascending the bluestone steps, you are greeted by the South Gate. An ancient banyan tree grows within the city wall of the South Gate, its trunk emerging from a crevice in the stone, with gnarled roots exposed, twisted and coiled.

Walking along the central bluestone path of the ancient town’s streets, the narrow alleys produce clear sounds with each step, compelling you to slow down and tread lightly, afraid of disturbing the town’s tranquility and serenity. This also allows you to calmly admire every brick and tile of the ancient town. Where else can you find traditional houses that blend so harmoniously with the mountainous terrain and enjoy such closeness to wind and water? Where else can you find old buildings that have witnessed more dramatic changes of time, only to see those changes continue?

The ancient town is built along the Daning River, covering an area of about 10 hectares. The street now called “Liberation Street” is T-shaped, connecting the three city gates to the east, west, and south. The east-west street is 350 meters long, and the north-south street is 200 meters long. People describe the ancient town as a miniature citadel where voices can be heard from all sides and one lantern can illuminate the entire town. The buildings in the town are mostly of brick-and-wood structure, often in the form of quadrangle courtyards, with blue bricks, black tiles, carved beams and painted rafters, upturned eaves, and an elegant, rustic charm, exhibiting a strong Jiang-Zhe architectural style.

As on every day for the past 1,700 years, villagers live peacefully in the ancient town, sitting at their doorsteps working on their tasks and managing their livelihoods. The Three Gorges Dam project has changed everything. In just seven months, the entire Dachang Ancient Town will be submerged, with water depths reaching nearly 30 meters, turning the area into a vast expanse of water. Yet there is no sense of anything being amiss, except for the large “Demolish” character on the South Gate, reminding everyone that this place will soon disappear. In early 2004, the ancient town will be entirely dismantled and partially replicated, and the people living here will spend the last summer of the millennium-old town.

When visiting Dachang Ancient Town, a must-see is the Wen Family Courtyard. This building, constructed in the early Qing Dynasty, is the largest and best-preserved structure in the ancient town. Wen Guanglin, the tenth-generation descendant of the Wen family, and Madam Fu Shaoxiang, the mistress of the courtyard, warmly introduce it to us. The Wen Family Courtyard was built by their ancestor who once served as a Qing Dynasty provincial governor. It faces east and covers an area of over 320 square meters. The entire building follows a post-and-lintel construction style, consisting of an entrance hall, main hall, and rear hall, all supported by wooden beams and rafters, with a total of 12 columns and 37 beams. The window lattices are intricately carved with delicate patterns. The carved windows resemble huge double happiness characters, decorated with auspicious motifs such as peaches, bats, chrysanthemums, and peonies. The courtyard’s drain is used to discharge sewage and rainwater, while the surrounding buildings form a corridor. The main hall is where the family elders receive guests, with two chairs placed under the bold inscription “Ancestral Virtue Brings Generational Prosperity,” which carries deep meaning. The eldest son of the elder has migrated and returned to his ancestors’ homeland—Guangdong. After over 400 years of change, most residents of Dachang are descendants of migrants from the “Huguang Filling Sichuan” period. Through the shifting tides of time, they are retracing their ancestors’ routes back to their ancestral homes.

It is understood that due to the rising waters of the Three Gorges Reservoir, Dachang Town bears the heavy responsibility of relocating migrants for the second and third phases of the water level rise. Currently, Dachang Town is only about ten meters above the 135-meter water level. A total of 15,000 migrants need to be relocated from Dachang Town. Large-scale relocation began in 2001, with the first batch of over 5,000 migrants moving to Anhui and Guangdong. To date, a total of 12,000 people have been relocated. After the completion of the Three Gorges Project, the beautiful Dachang Ancient Town and the surrounding fertile farmland will be submerged beneath the lake. The ancient town currently preserves well-maintained city gates with significant historical and cultural value, as well as the largest ancient architectural complex in the Three Gorges area. National cultural heritage authorities plan to relocate the entire ancient town as it is, along with the town government, to a new town area 6 kilometers away.

Source: Chongqing Hongyan Cultural Development Management Center Author: Liu Liqun

Dachang Town: Located at the junction of Chongqing, Shaanxi, and Hubei in eastern Chongqing, Dachang Town has a history of over 1,700 years and covers an area of 188.8 square kilometers. It currently has a total population of 46,979 and governs 30 administrative villages and 1 neighborhood committee. It is the center of the Lesser Three Gorges Golden Tourism Zone and the northern Wushan tourism corridor, as well as the largest third-phase migrant resettlement town in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area.

Dachang Town, located at the junction of Chongqing, Shaanxi, and Hubei in eastern Chongqing, generates nearly 3 million yuan in fiscal revenue annually, with nearly 100,000 yuan in tax rebates as disposable income. Especially after the migrant relocation, the non-public economy and secondary... Dachang Town detailed information++