Fushun County 抚顺县

History

The county government traces the old Fushun city to 1384, when a walled town was built under the Ming, followed in 1388 by a garrison post, the Fushun Qianhusuo (抚顺千户所). In 1778 the Qing rebuilt the city about one li south of the Ming site. In 1908 the seat of Xingren County (兴仁县) moved from Shenyang to Fushun and the county took the name Fushun. Coal mining began in 1901, and after the Russo-Japanese War the coalfield came under Japanese occupation. The county was abolished in 1952 and set up again in 1961. It is home to 15 ethnic minorities, among them Manchu, Korean, Mongol and Xibe people.

What to see

Sankuaishi National Forest Park (三块石国家森林公园) takes its name from three huge rocks standing together on a summit. It covers 108.7 square kilometres with 112 peaks, the highest at 1,131 metres, split between a southern area in Hou'an (后安镇) and a northern area in Tangtu (汤图乡). Named spots include the Bailongtan waterfall (白龙潭瀑布), Pigeon Cave (鸽子洞) and the Sankuaishi Reservoir. The county government says the area played an important part in the war against Japan, when it was called "a beacon behind enemy lines in Liaodong (辽东)", and it is now a base for honouring Yang Jingyu (杨靖宇).

Tiannü Mountain (天女山), locally called Wailazi (歪砬子), rises to 780 metres in Majuanzi township (马圈子乡) and is known for the Tiannü magnolia (天女木兰) and wild mushrooms; Chongxing Temple (重兴寺) lies on the same tourist loop. Guanshan Lake (关山湖), a national water-conservancy scenic area on the upper Dongzhou River (东洲河) 22 kilometres southeast of urban Fushun, has 3 square kilometres of water where egrets and wild ducks live year-round.

Food and local products

Around Tiannü Mountain the farmhouse cooking is led by a local folk banquet called "Sanliu Daodi" (三六到底), and frog is eaten in winter. Pollution-free, green and organic grain is grown in a cluster centred on the Dahuofang (大伙房) water-source protection zone, and 29 pick-your-own farms are open to visitors.

Highlights

• Sankuaishi National Forest Park 三块石国家森林公园: 108.7 square kilometres, 112 peaks, main peak 1,131 metres; rated 4A in 2017.
• Tiannü Mountain 天女山: 780-metre peak known for the Tiannü magnolia and wild mushrooms.
• Guanshan Lake 关山湖: National water-conservancy scenic area on the upper Dongzhou River.