Hong'an Ancient Town 洪安古镇

About Hong'an Ancient Town

Hong'an borders Guizhou's Songtao County Yajia town to the southeast and Hunan's Huayuan County Daheping township and Biancheng town to the northeast; it marks the terminal point of the administrative boundary line between Chongqing and Hunan, and is described as an important gateway from Chongqing to south-central China. The Liu-Deng Army also crossed the river here by boat during its advance into southwest China. A sandbar in the river was long known as 'Sanbuguan Island' ('the island nobody governs'): before the border was formally demarcated, villagers from the surrounding area would gather their kin there to settle land, water or marriage disputes by force when no government stepped in, in an account the report attributes to boatman Liao Zhongming; after the boundary was fixed, the island was converted into a resort hotel.

The Lala Ferry, also called the Hongcha Ferry, has carried border residents and traders across the Qingshui River for close to a thousand years, and is the ferry that Shen Congwen's novella Border Town describes Cuicui and her grandfather keeping, its boat said to carry about twenty passengers with horses at a time. It crosses by means of a steel cable strung across the river, with the boatman pulling the boat over using a notched wooden stick hooked over the cable. Hong'an town today is home to a mixed population of Tujia, Miao and Han residents, and stilt houses line both banks of the river.

What to look for

• The Lala Ferry crossing itself, worked by a boatman pulling a notched wooden stick along a steel cable strung across the Qingshui River.
• The former Sanbuguan Island in the river, once outside any government's jurisdiction and used to settle disputes by force, now a resort hotel.
• The stilt houses lining both banks of the Qingshui River.
• The point on the river where the Liu-Deng Army crossed during its advance into southwest China.

Location & getting there

Getting to Hong'an Ancient Town

Identify the main visitor approach and any separately managed houses, museums or performances. Ask before entering residential spaces or photographing residents.

• Search for 洪安古镇 with 重庆市 and 秀山土家族苗族自治县.