Ye Chengzhong (; 1840–1899) was a Chinese businessman and philanthropist active during the final years of the
Qing Dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
and a pioneer in the
hardware industry who also made considerable contributions to education.
Biography
Born in the
Zhenhai District
Zhenhai is a district and former county of the sub-provincial city of Ningbo in Zhejiang Province in eastern China. It has a population of 200,000.
History
The town of Zhenhai grew up at the foot of Zhaobao Hill on a tongue of land at the m ...
of Ningbo in Zhejiang Province and originally called Cheng Zhong (成忠), Ye's father died when he was young leaving the family poverty stricken. At the age of 14 he left school and begin work as an apprentice in a grocery store in
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
.
He saved enough money to buy a
sampan
A sampan is a relatively flat-bottomed Chinese and Malay wooden boat. Some sampans include a small shelter on board and may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. The design closely resembles Western hard chine boats like th ...
from which he then sold food to foreign sailors on the
Huangpu River
The Huangpu (), formerly romanized as Whangpoo, is a river flowing north through Shanghai. The Bund and Lujiazui are located along the Huangpu River.
The Huangpu is the biggest river in central Shanghai, with the Suzhou Creek being its maj ...
. According to ''The Century-Old Famous Factories and Stores in Shanghai'' published in 1987, an American businessman hired Ye's boat for a ride in 1862 but left behind a briefcase full of cash and valuables. Ye waited patiently and when the man returned he was deeply impressed by the boatman's honesty. He then lent Ye the money to open his first hardware store on Daming Road in the
Hongkou District
, formerly spelled Hongkew, is a District of the People's Republic of China, district of Shanghai, forming part of the northern urban core. It has a land area of and a population of 852,476 as of 2010.
It is the location of the Astor House, Sh ...
of Shanghai.
In 1890 Ye opened the Xiechang Match Factory (燮昌火柴厂) in Shanghai then in 1897 added branch mills at Hankou in modern-day
Wuhan
Wuhan (, ; ; ) is the capital of Hubei, Hubei Province in the China, People's Republic of China. It is the largest city in Hubei and the most populous city in Central China, with a population of over eleven million, the List of cities in China ...
and
Suzhou
Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...
. Ye expanded into other areas, establishing the Lunhua Silk Mill in 1894 and investing in five native banks (钱庄业 ''
qianzhuang'') and one western bank while his real estate company owned more than 400
mu () of property in Shanghai's Hongkou district.
Standard Oil
Standard Oil Company, Inc., was an American oil production, transportation, refining, and marketing company that operated from 1870 to 1911. At its height, Standard Oil was the largest petroleum company in the world, and its success made its co-f ...
Trust appointed Ye as their exclusive distribution agent in China from 1883 to 1893. As a "
comprador-merchant", he organized the distribution of
kerosene
Kerosene, paraffin, or lamp oil is a combustible hydrocarbon liquid which is derived from petroleum. It is widely used as a fuel in aviation as well as households. Its name derives from el, κηρός (''keros'') meaning "wax", and was regi ...
fuel across
North China
North China, or Huabei () is a List of regions of China, geographical region of China, consisting of the provinces of Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi and Inner Mongolia. Part of the larger region of Northern China (''Beifang''), it lies north ...
and the Lower and Middle
Yangtze
The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...
regions.
Ye established the Chengzhong Middle School in Shanghai, which was built between 1889 and 1901 where
Cai Yuanpei
Cai Yuanpei (; 1868–1940) was a Chinese philosopher and politician who was an influential figure in the history of Chinese modern education. He made contributions to education reform with his own education ideology. He was the president of Pek ...
was the first principal and
Hu Shih
Hu Shih (; 17 December 1891 – 24 February 1962), also known as Hu Suh in early references, was a Chinese diplomat, essayist, literary scholar, philosopher, and politician. Hu is widely recognized today as a key contributor to Chinese libera ...
along with
Coching Chu
Coching Chu (; March 7, 1890 – February 7, 1974) was a Chinese geologist and meteorologist.
Born in Shangyu, Zhejiang, Chu went to United States for his college education in 1910. He graduated from the College of Agriculture, University of ...
two of the first pupils. Today the building is home to the Shanghai Middle School No. 58 He also gave money to several other charitable institutions.
By the time of his death in October 1899, Ye's assets were valued at between six and eight million