Century-Old Station Building of the Jingzhang Railway Long Awaiting Cultural Property Status

Wang Wei guiding cultural heritage departments and experts in authenticating Kangzhuang Station on April 16, 2019

Former Site of the Kangzhuang Station Communist Party Branch

May 9, 2019, Beijing Youth Daily

Along the Yanqing District section of the Jingzhang Railway, a 110-year-old old station building still survives—the old station building of Kangzhuang Station. The old station building remains largely intact, serving not only as one of the earliest old station buildings of the Jingzhang Railway but also as a historic former site of a Communist Party branch. However, it has repeatedly missed out on cultural property status during successive cultural relic censuses. To protect the old station building, railway culture scholar Wang Wei submitted an Application for Immovable Cultural Property Recognition to the Yanqing District Culture Commission on October 29, 2018. To date, the cultural property recognition work for the old Kangzhuang station building is still advancing.

Officially put into use in 1909, Kangzhuang Station is one of the stations with the longest history along the Jingzhang Railway. The old station building has survived to this day; apart from the central station plaque being removed, the rest remains basically well-preserved and is still in use, making it a "living" historical building. In addition, the old station building is also the Former Site of the Kangzhuang Railway Party Branch, a piece of history that also spans nearly 100 years. Yet, in successive cultural relic censuses, the old Kangzhuang station building has repeatedly missed its affinity with cultural property status.

Railway culture scholar Wang Wei worries that without cultural property status, old buildings are not protected by the Cultural Relics Protection Law. On October 29, 2018, Wang Wei submitted the Application for Immovable Cultural Property Recognition to the approval section of the Yanqing District Culture Commission. Aside from the old Kangzhuang station building, the Kangzhuang steam locomotive engine house, steam locomotive water tower, railway worker dormitories, supervisory offices, and other historical buildings of the Jingzhang Railway were all among those he applied to protect.

Nearly half a year after the submission of the application form, on April 16, 2019, the Cultural Relics Section of the Yanqing District Bureau of Culture and Tourism organized cultural relic experts, railway departments, and others to conduct an on-site inspection of the Jingzhang Railway architectural remnants in the Kangzhuang area. As of the time of reporting, Wang Wei had not yet received the recognition results from the Yanqing District cultural heritage authorities. Beijing Youth Daily reporters will continue to follow the progress of the cultural property recognition.

Text / Beijing Youth Daily Reporter Cui Yifei

Photography / Beijing Youth Daily Reporter Cui Yifei

Editor / Cui Yifei