Dai Xiang Red Memory Museum

📍 Address: East side of Dai Xiang Village Committee, Lili Town, Wujiang District, Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province, beside National Highway 104

🏛️ Historical Background
The Dai Xiang Red Memory Museum was originally a late Qing Dynasty residential building constructed during the Guangxu era, once the ancestral home of a prominent local family. After the outbreak of the War of Resistance against Japan in 1937, this residence became a secret contact point for the Chinese Communist underground party, witnessing key developments in the early anti-Japanese armed struggle in southern Jiangsu. In the 1940s, the New Fourth Army established an intelligence station here, conducting behind-enemy-lines propaganda and supply transportation activities—making it a significant historical site in the resistance history of southern China.

🏗️ Architectural Features
The museum building exemplifies traditional Ming and Qing-style courtyard architecture of southern China, featuring gray bricks, dark tiles, towering horse-head walls, and intricately carved wooden windows and doors. The original layout of the main hall, side rooms, and central courtyard remains intact. After restoration in 2018, guided by the principles of "original appearance preservation" and "functional renewal," the structure retains its original framework and decorative details, now open to the public as a thematic exhibition space dedicated to red culture.

🖼️ Cultural Relics and Exhibits
The museum displays over a hundred historical artifacts, including:

• Cloth shoes, flashlights, and captured Japanese weapons used by New Fourth Army soldiers;
• Secret letters, maps, and seals belonging to underground party members during the war;
• Everyday items used by local civilians to support the frontlines, such as weaving tools and ration coupons;
• Historical photographs, digitized oral archives, and multimedia interactive installations.

📜 Cultural Significance
The Dai Xiang Red Memory Museum is the only specialized memorial in the Wujiang area focused on “underground liaison points during the War of Resistance,” filling a critical gap in the red heritage landscape of the Jiangnan water towns. Its authentic historical context and strong grassroots involvement highlight the deep popular foundation of the “people’s war,” making it a vital resource for Party history education and the preservation of local cultural heritage.

🎫 Visitor Information

• Opening Hours: 9:00–16:30, Tuesday through Sunday (closed Mondays)
• Admission: Free entry, reservation required in advance
• Transportation: Take Suzhou Metro Line 4 to “Tongli Station,” then transfer to Bus No. 745 to “Dai Xiang Village” stop; or drive directly along National Highway 104
• Recommended Visit Duration: 60–90 minutes

📌 Visitor Tips: Please keep quiet inside the museum. Open flames and flash photography are prohibited. Respect historical relics and practice courteous, responsible visiting.