Zhan Tianyou
Encyclopedia
Jeme Tien Yow was a distinguished Chinese railroad engineer. Educated in the United States of America, he was the chief engineer responsible for construction of the Imperial Peking-Kalgan Railway
(Beijing
to Zhangjiakou
), the first railway constructed in China
without foreign assistance.
, Guangzhou
) in Guangdong
of China. In 1872, twelve-years-old Jeme was chosen by Qing imperial officials to be sent to the United States as part of the Chinese Educational Mission
. Together with thirty children of similar age, Jeme arrived in Connecticut
. After studying at a primary school in New Haven, he then entered a secondary school there, and in 1878, Jeme was admitted to Yale University
. Jeme's major was Civil Engineering
, with an emphasis in railroad construction. Jeme received his bachelor's degree in 1881, and he was considered lucky because only a few months after his graduation, the Qing government decided to recall all students studying in the United States. Of those who were sent abroad, only Jeme and another student were able to obtain their college degrees.
Life was not good for the students recalled to China. The Qing government officials found behaviors of the foreign educated students non traditional Chinese. They enjoyed playing baseball and had their queues cut off. The government did not use their US acquired knowledge to good use. Most of the recalled students, including Jeme, were simply sent to commerce as translators or newly formed Imperial Navy
to becom officers. Jeme was sent to Fuchow in Fujian
Arsenal. A few years later, in 1884, the Imperial Navy in Fuchow was destroyed during the Sino-Franco War.
In 1888, he finally found his way to become a railroad engineer. Viceroy Li Hongzhang
in Peking was constructing a railroad that would link Tientsin to the coal mines in Tangshan
. A British engineer, Claude W. Kinder
, was hired as the chief engineer of the railroad. Through connections with his old schoolmates working in Peking, Jeme joined Kinder as an intern engineer. He was soon promoted to full-fledged engineer, and later district engineer. The railway that Jeme worked on was later extended to become the Peking Mukden Line. Jeme spent 12 years on various sections of this line before his next major assignment.
In 1902, Yuan Shikai
decided to build a special line for Empress Dowager Cixi
to visit the royal ancestors' tomb. Kinder was the original candidate for chief engineer, however the French were unhappy that a Englishman was assigned to the position. Eventually, Jeme got the assignment as the chief engineer of the 37 kilometres (23 mi) stub line. He managed to construct the railroad within budget and a very tight schedule. The Empress was pleased and permission was given to construct more railroads in China.
In 1905, the Imperial Qing government decided to build a railroad that would link the capital of Peking to the important trade city of Kalgan
to the north. This railway would be of strategic importance to the Imperial government. The decision was therefore made that the railway would be built without foreign assistance. Capital would come from the government, and no foreign engineers were to be hired. Jeme was once again appointed as chief engineer of the railway. At the beginning, some people were skeptical that the Qing government would be able to construct the railroad in the rugged mountains north of Peking all by itself. But Jeme showed he was an able engineer and completed the work two years ahead of schedule and under budget. He designed a zig zag
upwards railway by switching back the line near the Qinglongqiao railway station to overcome the steep gradient. When excavating the Badaling
railway tunnel, he employed the vertical shaft construction method to accelerate the construction. He was also said to be an advisor of the construction of the Kowloon-Canton Railway
, for the Lo Wu Bridge built in 1906.
He was the founding member of the China Institute of Engineers. Jeme was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by the University of Hong Kong in 1916. For his contributions to railroad engineering in China, Jeme was often called the "Father of China's Railroad".
Jeme died in Hankou in 1919 at the age of 58. He was buried at the Qinglongqiao railway station, where the Peking-Kalgan (Beijing-Zhangjiakou) railway crossed the Great Wall and the rugged mountains north of Beijing. A museum was also established nearby to commemorate the works of Jeme Tien Yow.
Jingbao railway
The Beijing-Baotou Railway or Jingbao Railway is a 833 km railway from Beijing to Baotou, Inner Mongolia in China. It is a very important route in northwestern China....
(Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
to Zhangjiakou
Zhangjiakou
Zhangjiakou, also known also by several other names, is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Hebei province of North China, adjacent to Beijing to the southeast. Its administrative area has a population of 4.35 million, and covers...
), the first railway constructed in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
without foreign assistance.
Biography
Jeme was born in Nam-hoi prefecture (now Liwan DistrictLiwan District
-History:Formerly named Xiguan, Liwan District was named after "Lizhiwan", which is derived from poem of "a bay of green water and red litchis along both banks". It covers an area of 16.2 km² and has a permanent population of about 540,000 and a permanent nonnative population of over 200,000...
, Guangzhou
Guangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
) in Guangdong
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
of China. In 1872, twelve-years-old Jeme was chosen by Qing imperial officials to be sent to the United States as part of the Chinese Educational Mission
Chinese Educational Mission
The Chinese Educational Mission was the pioneering but frustrated attempt to educate a group of 120 Chinese students in the United States....
. Together with thirty children of similar age, Jeme arrived in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. After studying at a primary school in New Haven, he then entered a secondary school there, and in 1878, Jeme was admitted to Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
. Jeme's major was Civil Engineering
Civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...
, with an emphasis in railroad construction. Jeme received his bachelor's degree in 1881, and he was considered lucky because only a few months after his graduation, the Qing government decided to recall all students studying in the United States. Of those who were sent abroad, only Jeme and another student were able to obtain their college degrees.
Imperial Navy
The phrase Imperial Navy may refer to:*The Austro-Hungarian Navy*The German Navy between 1872 and 1918*The Imperial Japanese Navy from 1869 until 1947*The Imperial Navy of Imperial Qing government*The Imperial Navy from the fictional Star Wars universe....
to becom officers. Jeme was sent to Fuchow in Fujian
Fujian
' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
Arsenal. A few years later, in 1884, the Imperial Navy in Fuchow was destroyed during the Sino-Franco War.
In 1888, he finally found his way to become a railroad engineer. Viceroy Li Hongzhang
Li Hongzhang
Li Hongzhang or Li Hung-chang , Marquis Suyi of the First Class , GCVO, was a leading statesman of the late Qing Empire...
in Peking was constructing a railroad that would link Tientsin to the coal mines in Tangshan
Tangshan
"唐山"redirects here. For an alternative name of China, see Names of China#TangTangshan is a largely industrial prefecture-level city in Hebei province, People's Republic of China. It has become known for the 1976 Tangshan earthquake which measured 7.8 on the Richter scale and killed at least...
. A British engineer, Claude W. Kinder
Claude W. Kinder
Claude William Kinder C.M.G., was an English engineer. For over thirty years he was engineer-in-chief of the Kaiping Tramway and Imperial Railways of North China....
, was hired as the chief engineer of the railroad. Through connections with his old schoolmates working in Peking, Jeme joined Kinder as an intern engineer. He was soon promoted to full-fledged engineer, and later district engineer. The railway that Jeme worked on was later extended to become the Peking Mukden Line. Jeme spent 12 years on various sections of this line before his next major assignment.
In 1902, Yuan Shikai
Yuan Shikai
Yuan Shikai was an important Chinese general and politician famous for his influence during the late Qing Dynasty, his role in the events leading up to the abdication of the last Qing Emperor of China, his autocratic rule as the second President of the Republic of China , and his short-lived...
decided to build a special line for Empress Dowager Cixi
Empress Dowager Cixi
Empress Dowager Cixi1 , of the Manchu Yehenara clan, was a powerful and charismatic figure who became the de facto ruler of the Manchu Qing Dynasty in China for 47 years from 1861 to her death in 1908....
to visit the royal ancestors' tomb. Kinder was the original candidate for chief engineer, however the French were unhappy that a Englishman was assigned to the position. Eventually, Jeme got the assignment as the chief engineer of the 37 kilometres (23 mi) stub line. He managed to construct the railroad within budget and a very tight schedule. The Empress was pleased and permission was given to construct more railroads in China.
In 1905, the Imperial Qing government decided to build a railroad that would link the capital of Peking to the important trade city of Kalgan
Kalgan
Kalgan may refer to:* Kalgan, Western Australia, a town*Kalgan River, in Western Australia*An earlier name for Zhangjiakou, in Hebei Province, China*A name used by World Of Warcraft developer Tom Chilton...
to the north. This railway would be of strategic importance to the Imperial government. The decision was therefore made that the railway would be built without foreign assistance. Capital would come from the government, and no foreign engineers were to be hired. Jeme was once again appointed as chief engineer of the railway. At the beginning, some people were skeptical that the Qing government would be able to construct the railroad in the rugged mountains north of Peking all by itself. But Jeme showed he was an able engineer and completed the work two years ahead of schedule and under budget. He designed a zig zag
Zig Zag (railway)
A railway zig zag, also called a switchback, is a way of climbing hills in difficult country with a minimal need for tunnels and heavy earthworks. For a short distance , the direction of travel is reversed, before the original direction is resumed.A location on railways constructed e.g...
upwards railway by switching back the line near the Qinglongqiao railway station to overcome the steep gradient. When excavating the Badaling
Badaling
Badaling is the site of the most visited section of the Great Wall of China, approximately northwest of urban Beijing city in Yanqing County, which is within the Beijing municipality. The portion of the wall running through the site was built during the Ming Dynasty, along with a military...
railway tunnel, he employed the vertical shaft construction method to accelerate the construction. He was also said to be an advisor of the construction of the Kowloon-Canton Railway
Kowloon-Canton Railway
The Kowloon–Canton Railway refers to a railway network in Hong Kong which is now combined with the MTR railway system, comprising rapid transit services, a light rail system and feeder bus routes within Hong Kong, and intercity passenger and freight train services to the rest of China...
, for the Lo Wu Bridge built in 1906.
He was the founding member of the China Institute of Engineers. Jeme was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by the University of Hong Kong in 1916. For his contributions to railroad engineering in China, Jeme was often called the "Father of China's Railroad".
Jeme died in Hankou in 1919 at the age of 58. He was buried at the Qinglongqiao railway station, where the Peking-Kalgan (Beijing-Zhangjiakou) railway crossed the Great Wall and the rugged mountains north of Beijing. A museum was also established nearby to commemorate the works of Jeme Tien Yow.