Walking along Yong'an Road towards the Fenjiang River, at the south of the intersection of Yong'an Road and Qingning Road, a gray antique bell tower stands in front of you. The four Chinese words of "Fenning Ancient Road" are embedded in the arched gate tower.
Fenning road is on the west side of the Dongfang Plaza. It emerged in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China. It is the epitome of Foshan's architecture during the Republic of China. It has witnessed the glory of Foshan and has a history of more than 100 years. There were many old buildings in the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China on Fenning Road. These buildings condensed the neoclassical architectural style. Classical columns such as Elnik, Taulic, Corinthian and Tuscan columns were used vividly, but the facades of each building were rarely the same. Some buildings had mixed styles, the external facade of the wall looking Western with a Lingnan style door.
Fenning Road in Chancheng District, also known as Fenning Gu Dao (means ancient road in Chinese), was once an important commercial thoroughfare composed of old Binlang Street, Fenningli and Shizhu Street in the ancient town of Foshan in the Qing Dynasty. Although it was only 300 meters long, it was the earliest commercial pedestrian street in Foshan. If the grand situation at that time was described, it would be the Foshan version of the famous Chinese painting Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival.
Every old Foshan citizen knows Fenning Road. It was the memory of most people about abundance. Fenning Road was an indelible glory. On both sides of the road were small Western-style houses, shops on the first floor, and people living upstairs. There were all kinds of shops, such as rice shops, glass shops, pharmacies, banks... Children would cross Fenning Road with family to have morning tea at Taoliyuan Restaurant (a famous restaurant during the republican period, 1912-1949).
According to historical data, in the late Ming Dynasty, the stream of Foshan ancient town was silted up, and the city center gradually shifted to the south bank of the Fenjiang River which was in the north of the town. As a result, the original commercial warehouse area on the south bank of the Fenjiang River was continuously expanded and enriched. In the early Qing Dynasty, Foshan's Lingnan commercial metropolis, north-south trade and commodity distribution center became more firmly established. The old Binglang Street and Fenningli area were located in the north of Foshan Ancient Town. This block was adjacent to the official port Zhengbu Wharf on the bank of the Fenjiang River in the north. It had the convenience of waterway transportation and occupied the geographical advantage. In the early Qing Dynasty, there were many large and small ships going north and south on the Fenjiang River, with frequent exchanges of goods, and officials and business travelers from all over the country. Trade halls were all over the place, and businesses were busy. It was a lively picture.
Around 1929, Zhongshan Park and Zhongshan Bridge were built in Foshan, and roads were expanded. The old Binglang Street, Fenningli and Shizhu Street were connected to form Fenning Road. The western style arcade commercial streets on both sides were built afterwards. After the expansion of the road, commerce had become more concentrated and developed.
Speaking of Fenning Road, gold ornaments, jade, yarn and silk industry, Baozitang, Ruizhitang, Tongfengtai, Yixing Cotton Yarn Shop... these familiar terms bring up the memories of old Foshan citizen. The Yixing Cotton Yarn Shop building was a landmark building in Foshan at that time, and it had witnessed the golden years of Foshan's textile industry. The former site of Yixing Cotton Yarn Shop was once the family business of the wealthy Li family in Foshan.
According to the historical relics census data, Yixing Cotton Yarn Shop was located at No. 62 Fenning Road, which said hello to the public for the first time after the new road was built in 1930. Based on the model of the most fashionable multi-story western style building in Foshan at that time, this large iconic shop was built at the corner of the crossroads. Among the many shops in Foshan at that time, Yixing Cotton Yarn Shop and its scale were most magnificent. Many seniors in Foshan still can recall the past.
According to the seniors, when they went to Zhongshan Park as a kid, they would see this shop every time they passed by. Many neighbors would also take yarn from the yarn shop, weave them into the cloth and sell it back to the yarn shop.
At the end of the Qing Dynasty and the beginning of the Republic of China, many women in family workshops in Foshan were engaged in the handicraft industry of woven fabrics. The yarn shop helped them install the loom at home, and then they brought yarn from the shop and wove them into cloth. Foshan was a well-known textile production base in Lingnan, where cotton weaving was flourishing. Therefore, Yixing Cotton Yarn Shop sold a large number of yarn and had overseas services every year, which made a lot of profits. It was very famous in the yarn industry in Foshan.
After the founding of the people's Republic of China, Yixing Cotton Yarn Shop changed its name to Foshan Yarn Company. During the planned economy period, it played an important role in developing and organizing the production of Foshan's textile industry and implementing the unified purchase and sale policy of cloth. Later, it also managed labor protection supplies, bedding, vegetable seeds and other shops. Each floor of the building had been added or rebuilt many times due to its own needs. Now it has been repaired, and the 80-year-old Yixing Yarn Shop has rejuvenated.
The exquisite plaster sculpture, the imposing archway and the shining colored Manchuria window glass... in addition to Yixing Cotton Yarn Shop, Fenning Road was also a street of Chinese medicine stores.
Around the 1930s, the commercial function of Fenning road had new changes. During the period of the Republic of China, Foshan’s local pharmacies for Chinese traditional medicine mostly gathered here. Foshan is the famous hometown of Chinese traditional medicine in Lingnan area. Foshan’s wax-packaged pill medicine was widely used in Lingnan and Southeast Asia in the late Qing Dynasty. The products madelocally were very popular in domestic and foreign markets. After the construction of the new road, famous brand manufacturers of Chinese traditional medicine in Foshan had come to Fenning road to open new shops, which made the ancient town a traditional characteristic brand to be inherited. Some of the famous brand manufacturers were Ji Lan Tang, She Wang Man, Yong An Pharmacy, Feng Liao Xing, Tian Fu Tang, Ruanshi Hetang, Ye De Shi, etc.
A well-developed business, of course, requires "financial institutions". Historically, Fenningli or Fenning Road had gathered a large number of shops in financial-related industries such as pawnshops, banks, exchange shops, big and small mortgage shops. The shop owners engaged in silver shops were mostly wealthy businessmen who were either rich or noble in the town. These shop owners were at the same time the owners of major commercial outlets. Therefore, the opening and closing of their silver shops had a very close relationship with the rise and fall of other industries.
According to historical records, in the Jiaqing and Daoguang years of Qing Dynasty, Li keqiong, a historical celebrity in Foshan, mentioned in his letter that the Jinfeng Silver Shop operated by his family was in Fenningli. However, during the period of the Republic of China, the commercial function of Fenning road was changed, and the function of silver shop declined. Most of them were turned into exchange shops.
Decades passed. On both sides of the road, there were still large and small shops, dealing in snacks, pastries, grain and oil, photography, stationery, clothing, bedding and other small commodities. The shops were busy and business was booming. The images of these street-facing buildings reflected the spirit and material abundance of Foshan people in a specific era, and their open-mindedness to both Chinese and Western cultures. The architectural style had high practical and ornamental value.
However, things didn’t turn out very well from 2010. The old city of Foshan was planned to be renovated. As the first phase of the renovation project of Famous Towns of Foshan, Fenning Road was planned to be built as the first intangible cultural heritage street in Foshan history, a Souvenir Street of commodities in Foshan, specialized in selling special cultural commodities such as paper-cuts, potteries and local products. However, due to various reasons, the Souvenir Street gradually fell silent.
In 2014, Guirui Real Estate got Fenning Road area in an auction. In 2015, some historical old buildings on the sides of the road were torn down, which brought shock and heated discussion to the public. Later, the chairman of Guorui company, apologized publicly, saying that he would actively cooperate with the investigation of government departments, accept fines and bear all responsibilities, and would restore and construct the demolished old buildings according to the government's requirements.
It was sad news that some historical buildings got destroyed. They were like the diary written by the city, telling people how time changed through all the years. They were old yet dynamic. This is a lesson for us all - we should cherish what we see and what we have in life, no matter how small or unimportant they might seem. Also, it is everyone’s duty to protect the environment, and what’s around us. Live with appreciation. Do not make historical treasures become history.
