把脈老建筑文化 追溯白象街老故事

□文、圖/本刊記者 楊艷

把脈老建筑文化 追溯白象街老故事

□文、圖/本刊記者 楊艷

青灰磚墻承載著白象街多少歷史舊事。（圖片由重慶文物保護志愿者服務隊提供）

以歷史為根 話當年老街

白象街曾是1891年重慶開埠后的經濟中心，這塊巴掌大的地方擁有重慶最早的有線電報局、藥材公會、大清郵局、美國大來公司，吸引過全中國乃至全世界的目光，曾被外界稱之為“金融街”，英、美、日等國家在這一帶開設洋行撈金，正如紐約華爾街，各界名流絡繹不絕。

陽春三月，在萬物蘇醒的季節，記者以一個探尋者的姿態走在煥然一新的白象街。這里依舊是青灰格調磚墻、歐式門窗、木質房檐，還有質樸的民國建筑風格，但感受到的是一種古老而綿長的氤氳氣息，仿佛時空交錯，懷舊的情緒就此彌散開來。

白象街貫穿于望龍門與太平門之間。它的名字來源于一個傳說，相傳很久以前，在這條街上就有一尊漢白玉雕塑的石象，我們現在在白象街頭就能看到一尊新石象，恰好和南岸玄壇廟一對青石獅相對，民間說這是“青獅白象鎖大江”。

近年來，重慶市政府不斷加大母城歷史文物的挖掘、保護、利用和傳承工作，開發、建設歷史文化街區，以此傳承歷史文脈，弘揚巴渝文化。作為下半城歷史文化街區的修復項目的一部分，現在的白象街開啟了城市建設的新篇章。它被賦予了新時代的城市功能和新特色，依托重慶的開埠文化，在“保護中開發，開發中保護”的理念下，以“保護、織補、針灸、縫合”的規劃手段，多處文物建筑保持原有的面貌。一座集文化、歷史、旅游、商業為一體的綜合區域正在原地“復活”，這些建筑不僅是承載重慶人記憶的容器，還組合出一幅新畫卷，成為重慶會客世界的城市名片和“新客廳”，這里就曾接待過法國總統弗朗索瓦·奧朗德、美國總統家族成員尼爾·布什等全球名人政要。

目前，還有部分老建筑正在緊張的修復中，當這些老建筑再次回到大家的視野之中，當“舊”與“新”相遇，將抒寫出別樣的精致和優雅。新的白象街將喚起重慶人對老城的記憶，加深新一代年輕人對這座城市的解讀。那些散落在白象街的每一個歷史遺跡和每一棟老建筑，都擁有值得回味的過去。今天，就跟隨記者的腳步，一起去探尋它們背后的故事。

藥材公會舊址：見證一段重慶藥材行業輝煌史

記者很容易就在街巷內找到藥材公會舊址，整棟建筑經過原地復建，氣派依舊。3層高的洋房前依然是那棵苦楝樹，枝繁葉茂，據說這棵樹是當年藥材同業公會的首任會長在公會成立時親手種下的。小院中心新修了一個大型的噴泉，建筑頂部有3個近5米高的拱型門洞，典型的巴洛克風格。曾經掌握著重慶藥材銷售命脈的藥材公會，現在已成為了一個文化藝術的聚集地，吸引了不少文化人、藝術家。3月5日，法國索菲亞藝術基金會就在此舉辦了一場當代女藝術家繪畫展，50多幅繪畫作品齊聚于此，當老建筑遇上藝術，它以嶄新的面貌，向世人彰顯著高雅與華貴。

追溯其歷史，明末清初時期，藥材幫在重慶有著舉足輕重的地位。盛行水運，渝中區占據了長江、嘉陵江兩大黃金水道的優勢，外省的江西臨安幫成為第一個在白象街設立藥材商號的幫會，隨即浙江幫、廣東幫等也相繼涌入，于是白象街這一帶成為了鄂、湘、贛、粵連接西南各省的咽喉中轉站，一時間變身為全國當時最繁忙的藥材市場。

據重慶海關稅務司記載，若將1930年至1939年間的重慶出口總量做一個排名，山貨、桐油、藥材，分別排名前三。當年藥材市場一帶，商家商鋪林立，由于商鋪越來越多，行業競爭越來越激烈，重慶本地的“藥七幫”與外省“十三幫”之間的矛盾也愈演愈烈。為了實現共贏，1926年6月，經過各藥材幫會多次協商，成立了重慶藥材同業公會，藥材市場這才從惡意競爭走向了共同合作，從此，就有了白象街這棟洋樓，也就是藥材公會舊址。曾幾何時，往來于此的必定是中國醫藥行業中頗有影響力的人物，許多牽動藥材市場的重要決定都在此開會協商而定。

時光荏苒，歲月悠悠，曾經喧鬧的碼頭歸于沉寂。直到現在，藥材市場附近依舊有許多藥材店鋪，每次經過，我們都能聞到濃烈的藥材味，而這藥材公會舊址在現代的氣息中“醒”來，百年建筑的綿長風韻與現代藝術文化在此相碰撞，協奏出穿透時光的交響曲。

李耀庭公館：重慶的第一盞電燈就在此點亮

往靠江一側大片的建筑工地遠遠望去，數棟建筑物外層被高高的腳手架以及綠色的圍網包裹著，周圍是連排而建的工棚，工人正在工地上忙碌。在一塊平地之中，一棟小樓格外顯眼，打量其輪廓，記者第一時間認出它就是卜鳳居，西南首富李耀庭的公館。

透過綠色的圍網，還能清楚地看到鑲嵌在青石墻上的木窗欞，底層有一扇青石門，上面寫著“卜鳳居”。據史料《渝中金融史話》記載，李耀庭出身貧寒，最初他往返于云南與四川，往兩地互銷茶葉、煙土和食鹽，后來在天順祥的重慶分號經營票號。直到20世紀初，天順祥已在全國開辦分號，還在中國香港、越南海防等設有機構，在重慶成為行業之首。李耀庭還逐步開辦了順昌公司、信記錢莊，并涉及電燈、絲綢、輪船等多家實業公司，他的聲譽遠播。

卜鳳居，正面3層，背面4層，錯落有致，坐南朝北，正對著長江，只可惜位于江邊的現代建筑擋住了視線，否則這棟樓房定是遠眺江景的好地方。整座建筑形如“船”形，呈圓弧形，遠觀又似炮樓，磚木青瓦，中西結合的建筑風格，在開埠時期頗為常見。

在這棟建筑里曾發生了一件大新聞，重慶的第一盞電燈就在此點亮，成為當年轟動一時的新鮮事。1906年，巴縣紳商劉沛膏在太平門安裝了100千瓦直流發電機，并首次向外供電。當天正是李耀庭70歲壽辰，就在他生辰當晚，卜鳳居內有50盞電燈齊明，這事震撼了全重慶，也曾一度成為重慶人茶余飯后的話題焦點。

2015年李耀庭公館發生火災，部分建筑受到損毀，記者從《李耀庭公館舊址修繕設計方案的批復》中，得知這棟老建筑將按照原貌進行維修，預計將在2017年年底修復完畢。至于修復后如何利用，目前還未確定。

江全泰號：收復川江航路的關鍵

白象街沿濱江一側的一棟4層樓高的老式洋房，在2015年10月的一場火災同樣受到損毀，這棟建筑就是“江全泰號”，曾是美國大來公司舊址。記者從重慶市文物局獲知，政府相關單位將對這棟因火災出現損毀的市級文保單位建筑，按照原貌進行修繕。

江全泰號被燒前的舊貌。（圖片由重慶文物保護志愿者服務隊提供）

這棟建筑原本造型別致，曾是白象街的建筑標桿，附近大多房屋在當年就受其風格的影響而建。它由層層疊疊的青石磚砌筑成，窗臺呈倒置的“金字塔”，像一盞盞火焰。敦實的墻身、拱形的天花穹頂、窗欞上鱗形浮雕，是典型的巴洛克建筑風格與中國傳統建筑風格相融的建筑精品。2008年，江全泰號被列入重慶市優秀近現代建筑名錄，2009年12月被公布為重慶市文物保護單位。

在這棟樓的歷史背后，有一位改寫過重慶歷史的重要人物—重慶民營企業家盧作孚先生。重慶開埠后，西方列強一直控制著海關，掌握重慶航權，大大遏制了中國本土民營經濟。1925年，盧作孚先生創辦了民生公司，在川江上與洋人進行競爭。1935年，他成功收購美國大來公司7艘外國輪船，由此助長了中華民族之士氣。同年，美國的大來公司倒閉，江全泰號就輾轉歸入愛國實業家盧作孚名下，后成為居民居住區。現在這棟飽經歲月侵蝕的老建筑，正在期待著重煥新生，重慶人都十分期待。

望龍門纜車舊址：擁有中國第一條客運纜車

位于白象街旁的望龍門纜車在老重慶人心里留有深刻的印記。消失已久的望龍門纜車，現在被納入下半城歷史文化街區的保護范圍。重慶人將有機會再次乘坐纜車。據了解，纜車車廂將被原樣復制后成為移動的小型陳列館，里面將陳列當年的歷史資料和老照片。修復后的纜車將成為下半城歷史街區的游覽景觀，同時延續它的重要使命，繼續解決下半城的交通問題，纜車兩旁還將設立步道供旅游休閑之用。

上世紀40年代，重慶望龍門因地形高低不平，與長江碼頭落差大，這才修建了一種特別的交通工具—望龍門纜車，這是中國第一條客運纜車，它穿行于江邊和山腰，靠著纜繩上下，曾一度是重慶人最主要的出行工具，解決了當地人爬坡費時費力的出行問題。

望龍門纜車全長178米，上下高差有近47米。停車站設在江邊，供當地人候車使用，纜車道在原來步行的碼頭石階上修建了鋼筋混凝土棧橋，橋上鋪設了軌道，車箱就在軌道上上下滑行。纜車軌道呈“魚腹式”，中間是雙車道，兩邊是單車道，兩個纜車在中間分道行駛。纜車通車是當年轟動重慶的大事，一時萬人空巷，很多重慶市民都趕去乘坐纜車。當年每隔8分鐘發趟車，高峰期發車時間更短，不輸于今天快節奏的輕軌發車的節奏。纜車車廂一次可載50人，下行的票價比上行更便宜。望龍門纜車的車廂像一個巨大的面包車，車頭有一座山的標志，沒有可以關閉的門，乘客可以在門邊探出頭，“打望”外面的風景。

纜車所在的江邊一帶曾非常繁榮，每天接待從江對岸坐船過來的人。夏季江邊漲水，纜車就停運。直到后來修建了重慶長江索道，越來越少的人乘坐望龍門碼頭到龍門浩的過江輪渡，望龍門纜車因此也少了不少乘客。幸運的是，在不久的將來，我們還能再見纜車當年的風采。相信在恢復通車之時，又將是一場盛事。

這些還只是文化遺跡的一部分，光在下半城，能代表重慶歷史文化的文物建筑就有很多，其背后的故事更是說不完。今天的白象街隨著時間的積累逐漸醞釀出一種獨特的老重慶氣質，它就像一面鏡子，折射出了一個時代的榮光。據統計，下半城是外地游客必游重慶的熱門景點，目前與解放碑咫尺之隔的白象街，以不可替代的歷史與人文沉淀，拓展了解放碑商圈旅游的豐富性。

北京有老胡同，上海有石庫門，重慶有一條白象街，它以城市核心、歷史傳承、商業改造這三大亮點打造，雖深處鬧市卻又從容平靜，它隨同這個這座城市發展的脈搏，不再被遺棄在沉寂的歲月里。蟄伏半個多世紀后，它正在原址慢慢“復活”，新的故事將在這里繼續延續，歷史文化將在這里繼續傳承。

Based on history and talk about the old streets in those years

Baixiang Street was once the economic center in Chongqing since Chongqing’s opening-up in 1891.This tiny place,which was the earliest to own the wired telegraph of fice,medicine association,Bureau of Post of Qing Dynasty,and American Dollar Company in Chongqing,had attracted China’s and even the world’s attention,and was called as the“f nancial street”.Just like the W all Street in New York,celebrities came to this place in an endless stream from countries,like the UK,US and Japan had set up foreign f rms to make a packet.

In March,a season of natural recovery,the reporter,as a seeker,walks along the fresh new Baixiang Street.Decorated with the steel grey brick walls,European-style doors and windows,and the wooden eaves,the simple architectural style of Republic can be easily noticed.Besides,immersing in the ancient and lingering dense atmosphere,your nostalgic mood will spread due to the confusion of time and space.

Running through the W anglongmen and Taipingmen,Baixiang Street (“Baixiang”means the white elephant) got its name from a legend.It is said that long long ago,there was a white-marble sculpture of stone elephant on the street.Therefore,a new sculpture of stone elephant can be seen on the street,which is exactly opposite to the pair of bluestone lions in the Xuantan Temple in Nan’an District.People said,“The bluestone lions and the white-marble elephants lock the big river together.”

In recent years,Chongqing municipal government constantly increases the efforts of excavation,protection,utilization and inheritance of historical relics in the mother town,and exploits and constructs the historical and cultural blocks,in order to inherit the historical context and promote the Bayu Culture.Baixiang Street,as one part of the restoration project of the historical and cultural blocks in the down area,turns into a new chapter in city construction.Given the city’s function and new features in the new era,relying on the opening-up concept of Chongqing,Baixiang Street will be programmed under the concept of“development through protection and protection through development”.In order to maintain the original appearance of several cultural relic buildings,the planning tool of“protection,darning,acupuncture and suture”will be adopted.A comprehensive region,consisting of culture,history,tourism and commerce,is now in its resurrection.

Those architectures are not only the container carrying Chongqing people’s memory,but also paint a new picture and became the city’s card and“new living room”for Chongqing to meet the world.Celebrities and politicians like the French President Nicolas Hollande,Neil Bush,the president of the US,and his family had been received here.

At present,some old architectures are still under repair.When those architectures come back to people’s vision,the encounter of the“old”and“new”will express a different kind of delicacy and elegance.

The new Baixiang Street will evoke people’s memory of the old city and deepen young people’s interpretation of this city.Those historical relics and each old building that scattered on Baixiang Street all boast a memorable past.Today,following reporter’s footsteps,let’s explore the stories behind them then!

The gray brick wall carries the history and old stories of Baixiang Street.(Pictures are provided by Chongqing heritage conservation volunteers group.)

The former site of medicine association: It witnessed the glorious history of Chongqing’s medicine industry

It is easy for the reporter to f nd the former site of medicine association in the street,which is still decent after the reconstruction on the same place.The bead tree,with luxuriant foliage,still stands before the foreign-style 3-storey building.It is said that the tree was then planted by the frst president of medicine association.A large fountain is newly built in the center of the garden.On the top of the architecture,there are three doorways 5 meters high,which represent the typical baroque style.The medicine association,once mastering the lifeline of medicine sales in Chongqing,now becomes a gathering place of culture and art,attracting a lot of intellectuals and artists.On March 5,the French Sophia Art Foundation held a painting exhibition of contemporary female artists here,in which more than 50 paintings were shown.Once the old architecture met the art,it would show its elegance and luxury with a brand new look.

Medicine association in Chongqing enjoyed a pivotal position whose history can be traced back to the end of Ming Dynasty and the early Qing Dynasty.The Yangtze River and Jialing River met at Yuzhong District,which gave birth to the prevailing of waterways.Lin’an Confraternity of Jiangxi Province became the frst to set the confraternity of medicine firm in Baixiang Street,followed by the confraternities of Zhejiang Province,and Guangdong Province,for which Baixiang Street not only became the transfer station connecting Hubei,Hu’nan,Jiangxi and Guangdong to each province in southwest China,and also the then most busy medicine market in the nationwide in a short time.

According to the records of Chongqing Customs Department,if we make a rank of the exports in Chongqing from 1930 to 1939,the top three were mountain products,tung oil and medicine.The merchants and shops stood in great numbers around the medicine market.At that time,due to the increase of shops,the competition in this industry became f ercer than ever,so was the contradiction between the local Yaoqi Confraternity and Shisan Confraternity from other provinces.In order to achieve a win-win situation,the Medicine Association of Chongqing was established after the several negotiations among those medicine confraternities in June,1926.Hence,this foreign-style building was built on Baixiang Street,i.e.the former site of Medicine Association.Once upon a time,many people coming and going at this place were influential figures in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry,and many important decisions affecting the medicine market were negotiated and determined here.

Time flies and the once bustling pier is now silent over those years.Until now,there are still many medicine shops near the medicine market.So every time when we pass by the market,the strong smell of medicine could still be smelt.And when the former site of medicine association“wakes up”in the modern intense tension,the collision between the lingering charm of century-old architecture and the modern art and culture has played a time-crossing symphony together.

Li Yaoting’s Mansion: The frst electric light in Chongqing was lit up here

Looking to the large construction site on the riverside from afar,several buildings are wrapped by the high scaf folding and the green fence.The work sheds are built in lines and builders are busy around on site.A small building stands out clearly against a f at ground.Sizing up its outline,the reporter immediately identified it as Bufengju,i.e.the Mansion of Li Yaoting,the richest man in the southwest China.

Through the green fence,the wooden window lattice embedded in the bluestone wall can be seen clearly,and“Bufengju”is written on the bluestone door.In accordance with the historical records Yuzhong Financial History,born in a poor family,Li Yaoting first traveled between Yunnan and Sichuan,selling tea,crude opium and salt to each place.He later ran the exchange shop of Chongqing branch of Tianshunxiang.In the beginning of the 20th century,Tianchunxiang had openedseveral branches in the nationwide and established institutions in Hongkong,China and Haiphong,V ietnam and etc.It dominated the industry in Chongqing.Li Yaoting had also gradually set up Shunchang Company,Xinji Bank and many industrial corporations in making electric lights,silk,ships and so on.His fame spred far and wide.

Although Bufengju faces the north and the Yangtze River,the modern buildings located on the riverside block the view.Otherwise,this mansion must be a good place to overlook the river view.The whole mansion in a circular arc,is shaped like a boat.But if you take a far view,it is just like a blockhouse with its brick,wood and grey tile.Three stories in the front and four storiess in the back,this well-proportioned building combines the Chinese and Western architectural style,which is quite common in the period of opening-up.

Once there was a flash-news happened in this building.The first electric light in Chongqing was lit up right in this building which had become a sensational novelty.In 1906,when Liu Peigao,the gentle merchant in Baxian County,installed the 100KW DC generator at Taipingmen,it was the first time to supply power externally.That day was Li’s 70th birthday,and 50 electric lights in Bufengju were lit up together in that night,which had shocked the whole of Chongqing and become the topic focus at people’s leisure.

A f re occurred in the Li Yaoting’s mansion in 2005,damaged some part of the building.The reporter learned that this old building will be repaired in the light with its original appearance,and it is expected to complete the restoration at the end of 2017 from the“Approval of the Restoration and Design Plan of the Former Site of Li Yaoting’s Mansion”.As for how to utilize this building,it is not to be determined yet.

The Jiangquantai: The key to regain the Chuanjiang River Route

The old foreign-style four-story building,standing on the riverside of Baixiang Street,was also damaged in the fire in October,2015,which is exactly the Jiangquantai,i.e.the former site of American Dollar Company.The reporter learned from the Chongqing Bureau of Cultural Relics that the relevant government agencies would repair this municipal cultural protection building in accordance with its original appearance.

Since this building was once a landmark of Baixiang Street with its original unique shape,most of the houses nearby were built under the impact of its style.Consisting of many layers of bluestone bricks,the windows of this building are like many f ames in the shape of inverted“Pyramid”.With the solid walls,vaulted ceiling dome and the squama-shaped emboss on the window lattice,this building is a typical architecture blending the baroque architectural style and traditional Chinese architectural style.In 2008,the Jiangquantai was on the list of Chongqing Excellent Modern Architectures and announced as the Chongqing municipal cultural relics protection units in December,2009.

Behind the history of this building,there was a man named Lu Zuofu,a private entrepreneur in Chongqing who had rewritten the history of Chongqing.After the opening-up of Chongqing,Mr.Lu founded the Minsheng Company,competing with the foreigners on the Chuanjiang River.In 1935,he successfully acquired 7 foreign boats of Dollar Company,which had encouraged the morale of the Chinese nation.In the same year,along with the collapse of American Dollar Company,the Jiangquantai was included into the patriotic industrialist Lu Zuofu’s property,and then became the residential areas.Nowadays,this building after those years of erosion is waiting for a new lease of life and even the Chongqing people are looking forward to it.

The former site of Wanglongmen cable car China’s frst passenger transportation cable car

The Wanglongmen cable car,located near the Baixiang Street,must have left a deep imprint in the hearts of the elder Chongqing people.The long-lost Wanglongmen cable car is now included into the down area’s protection of historical and cultural streets.Therefore,Chongqing people will have the opportunity to take a cable car again.It is understood that the cable car would be copied as a small moving exhibition hall where the historical information and old pictures would be displayed.After restoration,the cable car will become a tourist spot in the down area’s historical and cultural streets,while continues its important mission to solve the traf fic problems in the down area.The walkways will also be set up on the both sides of the cable car for tourism and leisure.

In the 1980s,a special traf fic tool,Wanglongmen cable car,was built due to the uneven terrain and the big drop between Wanglongmen and the pier,which is China’s first passenger transportation cable car.Running through the riverside and the mountainside,and relying on the cable to go down and move up,the cable car was once the main means of transportation for Chongqing people,which had solved the traff c issues of timeconsuming climbing for the local people.

The Wanglongmen cable car is 178 meters in length and the height dif ference nearly 47 meters.The parking station is located on the riverside for the local people to wait the cable car.The reinforced concrete trestle is built over the original walkways on the pier stone steps,on which the cable railways are installed.The cable is able to glide up and down on the track.With two lanes in the middle and single lanes on both sides,the cable railways show“f shbellied”and two cable cars move on its own track.The operation of the cable car was a sensational event in Chongqing at that time,therefore many Chongqing people rushed to take the cable car.The cable car would departure at 8-minute intervals and even shorter in the rush hour,which was no less than the departure frequency of fast-paced light rail at present.The cable car could carry 50 people at a time and cost less to go down.The cabin of the Wanglongmen cable car was just like a giant minibus with a mountain mark on the front.As there was no doors that could be closed in the cabin,passengers could poke their heads out of the door to catch the view outside.

The riverside used to be very prosperous for receiving people from the other side of the river.Once the river rose in summer,the cable car would stop the service.After the construction of Chongqing Yangtze River Cableway,since fewer and fewer people chose to take a ferry from the Wanglongmen Pier to Longmenhao,there were even less passengers who would take the W anglongmen cable car.However,we are able to get a glimpse of it in the near future.There is no doubt that the reopening of the cable car would be a great event again.

These are only one part of the cultural relics and in the down area only since there are a lot of historic buildings that could represent the history and culture of Chongqing.The stories behind them would be endless.With the passing of time,Baixiang Street gradually brews a unique quality belonging to the old Chongqing,which turns into a mirror,ref ecting the glory of an era.According to the statistics,scenic spots in the down area are popular among the non-native tourists.Baixiang Street,steps away from the Jiefangbei,has expanded the richness of Jiefangbei Business District with its irreplaceable history and culture.

Just like Hutong in Beijing,Shikumen in Shanghai,Baixiang Street in Chongqing,which is built with such features of the urban core,historical heritage and business transformation,owns its easiness and quiet atmosphere in the downtown.With the development of this city,it would no longer be abandoned in the dreary years,sleeping for over half a century .Moreover,it is now reviving on its original site where new stories will continue to go on and the traditional culture will continue to be inherited.

Feel the Old Architectural Culture and Seek the Old Story of Baixiang Street

□Article,Pictures Journalist Yang Yan