LU-CHOU

Pinyin Luzhou, city in southern Szechwan sheng (province), China. A river port at the junction of the Yangtze River and the T'o River, Lu-chou's communications were further improved during World War II, when a highway was built south across the mountains to K'un-ming in Yunnan province to connect Szechwan to the Burma Road. Lu-chou, although an ancient city, remains essentially a river port. The first county there, Chiang-yang, was founded in the 2nd century BC and became the seat of a commandery in AD 25. Under the Sui dynasty (581618) the county was renamed Lu-ch'uan and became the seat of the chou (prefecture) of Lu. This name was kept until 1912, when it became Lu county. Until the completion of the Ch'eng-tuNei-chiangCh'ung-ch'ingI-pin rail network in the mid-1950s, which bypassed the city, Lu-chou was the main port outlet for such commodities as the salt and chemicals of Tzu-kung, the sugar of Nei-chiang, and the agricultural goods of the region to the north. It was also a trans-shipment place for grain, tea, tobacco, hides, and meat from northern Yunnan. The completion of the railway has, however, taken away some of its former trade, which now goes direct to Chungking (Ch'ung-ch'ing) by rail, while much of the export trade from Nei-chiang has been diverted to I-pin. With the exception of a small ammonia fertilizer plant built in the 1960s, Lu-chou has no major industry and has, therefore, declined since the early 1950s, although it remains a major market and commercial centre for the densely peopled and fertile plain of the lower T'o River. Pop. (1988 est.) 248,700.