Qinghe County 清河县

History

The county government speaks of more than 2,500 years as a walled town. Under the Han the land belonged to the counties of Xincheng (信成) and Qingyang (清阳); the Northern Qi called it Wucheng (武成县) and the Sui renamed it Qinghe. The old city of Beizhou (贝州) was an important city under the Tang and Song, known as the "northern storehouse of the realm" (天下北库).

Qinghe presents itself as the ancestral home of the Zhang (张) surname and the home town of Wu Song (武松), the tiger-slaying hero, and says many episodes of the novels "Water Margin" and "The Plum in the Golden Vase" are set here. Empress Dou (窦氏), wife of Emperor Wen of Han, came from the county. The county counts ten top scholars in the imperial examinations, among them Sun Fujia (孙伏伽), described as the first recorded holder of that title.

What to see

The Youfang Wharf (油坊码头) stands on the left bank of the Wei Canal (卫运河). Hebei Daily describes it as the only group of brick-built wharves left on the Hebei stretch of the Grand Canal: begun in the Hongzhi reign of the Ming, it grew by the Qianlong reign into six specialised wharves 933.8 metres long, faced with a 10.2-metre-high brick revetment. It became a national key protected site in 2006. Nearby are a 3A canal-themed scenic area and the Yiqinghe Salt Shop Museum (益庆和盐店博物馆), which has a model of the old market town, oars and anchors. The Zhutangkou river works (朱唐口险工) close by have a wave-shaped revetment built to cushion the current.

Cashmere Town (羊绒小镇) grew from the Qinghe cashmere goods market opened in September 2008 and is now rated a national 4A scenic area.

Getting oriented

The county is about 164 km from Shijiazhuang (石家庄), and its seat is Gexianzhuang Town (葛仙庄镇). Nangong (南宫市) lies to the north, Linxi (临西县) to the south and Wei County (威县) to the west. The Beijing–Kowloon railway stops at Qinghe City station, and the route of the Xiong'an–Shangqiu high-speed railway crosses the county.

Highlights

• Youfang Wharf 油坊码头: Ming–Qing brick wharves on the Wei Canal, a national key protected site since 2006.
• Yiqinghe Salt Shop Museum 益庆和盐店博物馆: Museum near the wharf with a model of the old canal town and shipping relics.
• Cashmere Town 羊绒小镇: Cashmere market district opened in 2008, rated a national 4A scenic area.