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Lin Society pays tribute to man who helped modernize education
By Wu Huixin |
May 23, 2012, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
VISITORS meander among pink roses and green willows around West Lake, yet few visit Lin Society, a two-story house on a nearby hill.
The building commemorates the life of Lin Qi (1839-1900), who was responsible for establishing several key schools in the city. Located on Solitary Hill and close to Crane Pavilion, it was originally built in 1900 according to Lin's last wish.
Lin, a native of Minhou, Fujian Province, was the mayor of Hangzhou for four years during the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
He established Qiushi Academy (now Zhejiang University), Silkworms Breeding School (now Zhejiang Sci-Tech University) and Yangzheng School (now Hangzhou High School).
Earlier this week, the local government finished the restoration of Lin Society and opened it to the public.
It's easy to reach the place. Walk along Bai Causeway and go north to Hougushan Road, after passing dozens of plum trees there is a small building.
The building mixes Chinese and Western styles. It has upturned eaves and cement walls. Nearby, there are two camphor trees that are more than 500 years old.
The interior has several touch screens which people can use to learn about Lin and his achievements.
After Lin died in 1900, his descendants, according to tradition, should have taken his body back to Fujian, yet they buried him in Hangzhou because of his last wish.
Hangzhou locals collected money and bought a tomb at a corner of Solitude Hill. They then constructed an ancestral hall in front of the tomb.
The hall was destroyed during wars in the 1940s and was rebuilt in 1951.
In the decades after its reestablishment, it was used as an office building, yet people working there did not know it was intended for Lin.
In 2003, the offices were relocated and the building was renamed Lin Society, which is also known as the Memorial Hall of Lin Qi. In front of the building sits a bronze statue of Lin.
Though he only worked for four years in Hangzhou, he contributed greatly to the city's education.
Qiushi Academy, now Zhejiang University, was founded in 1897 by Lin. Thirty students were enrolled in the first year. Classical Chinese philosophy and modern subjects such as history, geography, chemistry, physics and music were taught. Qiushi Academy was dubbed "a source of revolutionary ideas in Zhejiang."
More than a century later, Zhejiang University ranks among the world's top 200 universities, and in the top 30 in Asia.
Meanwhile, as the mayor of Hangzhou, Lin attached great importance to the silk industry.
In 1895, the Qing Dynasty signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki, in which China paid Japan a war indemnity of 200 million silver taels. After that high-quality silk from Japan flooded the market, making Hangzhou silk unsalable.
To improve the quality of Hangzhou silk, Lin established Silkworms Breeding School, the first school of its kind in China. Now it is known as Zhejiang Science and Technology University.
Lin imported advanced silk technology, hired Japanese experts, popularized knowledge, cultivated professionals and introduced new varieties in the countryside.
Lin laid the foundations for Hangzhou's modern silk industry.
In 1899, Lin founded Yangzheng School, setting a precedent in the city's secondary education.
Due to the failure of Hundred Days' Reform, a political, cultural and educational reform movement in 1898, the Qing government forbid anyone from establishing modern schools.
He named Yangzheng School "Si Shu," an old term to get around the ban.
It eventually became known as Hangzhou High School, which exists today and is considered one of the best secondary schools in the city.
Address: 1 Hougushan Rd
Tel: (0571) 8799-6663
Admission: free
The building commemorates the life of Lin Qi (1839-1900), who was responsible for establishing several key schools in the city. Located on Solitary Hill and close to Crane Pavilion, it was originally built in 1900 according to Lin's last wish.
Lin, a native of Minhou, Fujian Province, was the mayor of Hangzhou for four years during the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
He established Qiushi Academy (now Zhejiang University), Silkworms Breeding School (now Zhejiang Sci-Tech University) and Yangzheng School (now Hangzhou High School).
Earlier this week, the local government finished the restoration of Lin Society and opened it to the public.
It's easy to reach the place. Walk along Bai Causeway and go north to Hougushan Road, after passing dozens of plum trees there is a small building.
The building mixes Chinese and Western styles. It has upturned eaves and cement walls. Nearby, there are two camphor trees that are more than 500 years old.
The interior has several touch screens which people can use to learn about Lin and his achievements.
After Lin died in 1900, his descendants, according to tradition, should have taken his body back to Fujian, yet they buried him in Hangzhou because of his last wish.
Hangzhou locals collected money and bought a tomb at a corner of Solitude Hill. They then constructed an ancestral hall in front of the tomb.
The hall was destroyed during wars in the 1940s and was rebuilt in 1951.
In the decades after its reestablishment, it was used as an office building, yet people working there did not know it was intended for Lin.
In 2003, the offices were relocated and the building was renamed Lin Society, which is also known as the Memorial Hall of Lin Qi. In front of the building sits a bronze statue of Lin.
Though he only worked for four years in Hangzhou, he contributed greatly to the city's education.
Qiushi Academy, now Zhejiang University, was founded in 1897 by Lin. Thirty students were enrolled in the first year. Classical Chinese philosophy and modern subjects such as history, geography, chemistry, physics and music were taught. Qiushi Academy was dubbed "a source of revolutionary ideas in Zhejiang."
More than a century later, Zhejiang University ranks among the world's top 200 universities, and in the top 30 in Asia.
Meanwhile, as the mayor of Hangzhou, Lin attached great importance to the silk industry.
In 1895, the Qing Dynasty signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki, in which China paid Japan a war indemnity of 200 million silver taels. After that high-quality silk from Japan flooded the market, making Hangzhou silk unsalable.
To improve the quality of Hangzhou silk, Lin established Silkworms Breeding School, the first school of its kind in China. Now it is known as Zhejiang Science and Technology University.
Lin imported advanced silk technology, hired Japanese experts, popularized knowledge, cultivated professionals and introduced new varieties in the countryside.
Lin laid the foundations for Hangzhou's modern silk industry.
In 1899, Lin founded Yangzheng School, setting a precedent in the city's secondary education.
Due to the failure of Hundred Days' Reform, a political, cultural and educational reform movement in 1898, the Qing government forbid anyone from establishing modern schools.
He named Yangzheng School "Si Shu," an old term to get around the ban.
It eventually became known as Hangzhou High School, which exists today and is considered one of the best secondary schools in the city.
Address: 1 Hougushan Rd
Tel: (0571) 8799-6663
Admission: free
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