The Development History of Hanyang Ancient Town

Like an elegant figure skater, Minjiang River glides past Qingshen, Zhongyan Temple and Deyun Temple, and then gracefully bends into an oblique "U" shape, surrounded by a small town on three sides. It is said that as early as the Han Dynasty, a family named Yang moved here from other places. Seeing that the Minjiang River silt has been deposited here for many years, it has formed a flat terrain and fertile soil, which is an ideal place to settle down, so I settled in Bashang, specializing in farming and sericulture. Later, many immigrants who migrated along the waterway also settled here, lived and multiplied, and gradually formed a village and a market town. So this town was named Hanyang Town, also called Hanyang Dam.

Hanyang Town, named after the Han Dynasty, has a history of more than 1000 years. In the past, Hanyang Town was a famous water wharf. Relying on the advantages of Minjiang River, Hanyang Town was located in the regional center of two cities, three counties and nine townships. Businessmen gathered and were bustling. Thousand-year-old terraced pavilions, blue brick and wooden walls, slate street, Xiaoqing tile house, quadrangle and peak fire wall are adjacent, and the unique diaojiao building, ancient eaves carved with birds and animals, and well-shaped streets have constructed the face of ancient wells in Hanyang ancient town, which has high archaeological and tourism value.

On the north, south and east of the town are the famous "Hanyang Three Dams". It is a concentrated producing area of mulberry, withered, cocoon and manual reeling. Hanyang Silk, Hanyang Chicken, Hanyang Peanut and Hanyang Citrus have a long history.

Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, Hanyang's commerce and service industries were very prosperous, especially the silk market and rice market. "Hanyang Silk" is famous at home and abroad for its bright luster and uniform brightness, and is exported to the American market. Hanyang Silk Market and Chengdu Cuqiao Silk Market were once listed as "two major silk markets" in southwest Sichuan. Hanyang is prosperous in business and active in economy by virtue of its geographical advantages of Minjiang River waterway and connecting "3 counties and 9 townships". Every market (bazaar) period, merchants gather in the bazaar, ships on the dock are crowded, and boats, vendors and passing tourists block the streets, so its business is very prosperous. Therefore, it has always been known as "poor youth, rich Hanyang".

There are eight streets in Hanyang Town, including Mishi Street, Huamian Street, Yan Guan Street, Fanshen Street, Banbian Street, Xia Zheng Street, Zheng Heng Street and Houzheng Street.

As time goes by, Hanyang, which used to be an important waterway and port for ships in central Sichuan, was once crowded with merchants and bustling, but now the scenery is no longer there. Walking into the town, those old streets, old shops and old houses, although most of them still maintain a complete quaint style, can only daydream about the heavy history they carry from those adjacent quadrangles and those unique diaojiao buildings; From those high walls of wind and fire, those ancient eaves carved with strange birds and animals, we can guess their cultural accumulation.