The Chengyun Railway_Matthew DelsordoThe Chengyun Railway_Matthew Delsordo

Map Creator: Matthew DelSordo ’19

The Chengdu-Chongqing (or Chengyu) Railway was originally envisioned in 1903 as a way to connect Sichuan’s two population hubs and to provide a commerce and transportation link between the Yangtze River and the interior. These plans stalled after financing troubles contributed to Imperial seizure of the railway. Unrest in response to this decision grew into the 1911 Chinese Revolution. In the ensuing Warlord Era little work was completed, and even when construction was officially resumed by the Republican government in 1937, only grading of the route was ever completed due to war-influenced manpower and resource shortages. Only once the Communist government brought some degree of stability was the track laid, and the Chengyu Railway was officially opened for business in 1953, fifty years after its inception, and the first railroad built by the new People’s Republic of China.