T'UNG-HUA

Pinyin Tonghua, city, southern Kirin sheng (province), China. T'ung-hua is situated in the valley of the Hun River in the densely forested Ch'ang-pai Mountainsan area well known from early times for the manufacture of various forest products and for ginseng (a medicinal preparation made from an aromatic root). The history of Chinese colonization in the area began in the mid-19th century, when the region was officially opened for settlement in the period 186274. Most of the first settlers came from Shantung province, many of them during and after the great famines of the 1870s. T'ung-hua was constituted a county seat in 1876. During the early period, most of T'ung-hua's trade went via the Hun and Yalu rivers; but under the Japanese occupation after 1932, a railway was constructed linking T'ung-hua with the main Manchurian rail network and with northern Korea. The area was found to be rich in coal and iron ore. The Japanese planned to establish a base of heavy industry there and constructed a power station on the Hun River. Iron ore from the area was sent to the great steelworks at An-shan in Liaoning province. Since 1949, T'ung-hua has changed from a centre of light industry, producing vegetable oils, wines, and various handicrafts, into an industrialized city. A large paper industry has been set up, and engineering plants making such products as electrical and power equipment and mining machinery have been established. The most important development, however, has been the construction of a large integrated iron and steel complex. Coal is mined in the area. Pop. (1985 est.) 285,100.