History of Benxi Lake

Benxi Lake is located in the north of Benxi City, under the cliff of Woyun Mountain, which is a small lake in the cave. The bottom of the lake is wide and narrow, like a horn of a rhinoceros, hence the name "Cup Rhino Lake". In the twelve years of Yongzheng (1734) in the Qing Dynasty, because the name of "Beixi Lake" was elegant and difficult to write, it was renamed as "Benxi Lake" (the inscription on Benxi Lake Yaowang Temple). In the eighth year of Tongzhi (1780), Gao Shengyao, the chief of the Liaodong region, wrote the word "Liaodong Benxi Lake" chiseled above the cave entrance. Since then, the name of Benxi Lake has spread.

The Benxi Lake area is famous for its coal iron and limestone production, and there are many caves. According to research, as far back as 2000 years ago, this place was called "kiln street" for burning cylinders and making tiles. The ceramic industry developed with the rise of the coal and iron industry. By the end of the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, workshops such as porcelain jars, terracotta tiles, and pottery jars, as well as manufacturing industries that had begun to take shape, were all over the market. Xihu became a well-known production base for ceramic products.

In the thirteenth year of Yongzheng in Qing Dynasty (1735), Yang Chunhai, from Yu County, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, joined many blacksmiths in Houhu and Liutang to engage in coal mining and ironmaking. During the Tongzhi years, tourists from afar came to visit the mountains and rivers of the "Benxi Lake", especially from Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong and other merchants. A large number of merchants gathered in the industry, forming a "Lu" The four major kiln industries of "cylinder" "Shuncheng", "Guangsheng" and "Fushun", the secluded mountain village woodland has since been named "Yaojie". After the outbreak of the Russo-Japanes War in the 30th year of Emperor Guangxu in Qing Dynasty (1904), Japan stepped up its economic invasion of eastern Liaoning. Japanese Okura Kachiro established the "Benxi Lake Okura Coal Mine" in the area of "Yao Street". The increase in coal mining workers has led to the rapid development of commerce and handicrafts.   There are more and more employees in the field, the market population has doubled, and the scope of "Yao Street" has gradually expanded, forming a bridge   starting from Hedong, spanning Hexi to Liutang, A narrow strip with a total length of more than 4000 meters.

In the 31st year of Guangxu (1905), General Sheng Er (now Shenyang) Zhao Erxun wrote to the Qing court and requested the establishment of Benxi County. In the following year, with the approval of the officials, each of the east of Liaoyang, the north of Phoenix, and the south of Xingjing (now Xinbin County) was located in Benxi Lake, which was called Benxi County, and the county government was located in Benxi Lake. Benxi Lake has become the political and economic center of the upper Prince River. In the thirty-three years of Guangxu (1907), Shengjing was renamed Fengtian, and the province was established. The two counties of Benxi and Huanren were on the east side of the road, and they were the counties of Fengtian Province.Since Benxi Lake is the location of Benxi Coal and Iron Company, in the process of its coal and iron industry development, business and service industries have gradually developed, driving the development of the surrounding economy centered on Benxi Lake. Soda Factory Fort, Qinghe City, shops along the Prince Edward River, pots and groceries are lined up, and casinos, brothels, bigsmoking halls, etc. also came into being. The officials of the county government and the senior staff of Benxi Lake Coal and Iron Company constitute the upperlevel rulers of Benxi Lake, and theaters, tea houses and restaurants have become places for their decaying lives. The Benxi Lake area, which was originally small in number, gradually formed an industrial production-type population settlement. In the early period of the Republic of China, Benxi Lake had become the center ofthe urban area. After the Republic of China, the general economic development of the Benxi area continued to concentrate on Benxi Lake.The Benxi Lake area is densely populated, lined with shops and convenient transportation. It has become the economic, political and cultural center of the Benxi area, and has the conditions for the city. In 1939, the puppet Manchuria established a city in Benxi, known as "Benxi Lake City", and the municipal institution was located in theurban area of Benxi Lake.

Since the establishment of the city, Benxi Lake has shown the situation of a city with two heavens. From Xiaomingshangoukou to the west of Benxihu Railway Station, on the north bank of Benxihu River, it became a lease place for Japanese invaders; Shunshanzi, Dongshan, Nanshan, and Xishan were affiliated to the Coal and Iron Corporation. The street where the Japanese live is neat, the houses are quiet, and the sanitary equipment is exquisite, which is called "foreign street". The streets where Chinese people live are small and crowded, houses are dilapidated, the sanitation conditions are extremely poor, the air is dirty, and the lights are dim, which is called "China Street". During this period, the Japanese opened 55 businesses in Benxi, including 34 in the local area of Benxi Lake, and more than 110 merchants opened by the Chinese were mainly distributed in the area of Benxi Lake. Commercial houses such as Zhangwanpu, Daoxiangcun, Fuzengli, and Sanyihe are competing for the introduction. Civil architecture and commercial outlets are gradually emerging, highlighting the market and prospering the economy.

On August 15, 1945, Japan announced its unconditional surrender and the fall of the Japanese puppet government power to Benxi Lake. In 1947, the Kuomintang government announced the abolition of Benxi Lake City, and merged the original municipal area into Benxi County. After the liberation of Benxi in October 1948, the city of Benxi was rebuilt under the leadership of Liaodong Province. In the early days of the founding of New China, Benxi Lake City was a municipality directly under the Central Government, after which the word "lake" was removed and changed to Benxi City, which is still used today. In 1955, the Benxi Municipal Government merged the Hedong and Hexi districts to establish the Benxi District. The following year, it was changed to Xihu District.

After the reform and opening up, due to the changes and development of urban economic construction, the two districts of Pingshan and Mingshan have gradually replaced the former economic and cultural center of Xihu area. Benxi Lake has changed from the prosperous urban center to the remote and backward old today. Urban area. In recent years, with the care and support of governments at all levels, the old town of Xihu is changing its appearance. The old potholes and ditches turned into wide and smooth roads, and the low and simple houses were replaced by row of tall buildings. Today, the Benxi Lake area still occupies an important position in the development of Benxi. Because people will not forget that here has concentrated a century of storms, witnessed the formation and development of a city, and recorded the rise and endeavor of a nation.

In the new era of socialist reform and opening up, the lacquered water, the towering ancient temple, and the exquisite and clear Benxi Lake have re-enchanted a fascinating brilliance. Surrounded by mountains and stone walls, a beautiful scenery of "Xihu Lake" ".