Shipyards in the 19th century anchored the future of Pudong modernization

Editor’s note:

Rome wasn’t built in a day. Neither was Shanghai. Once dubbed "the Paris of the East,” the city has evolved into a fusion of multiculturalism. Along the way, Shanghai has accumulated a repository of stories about the people and events that have shaped its history. Five areas of the city occupy pride of place in that journey: People’s Square, Jing’an Temple, Xujiahui, Lujiazui and Xintiandi. This series, a collaboration with Shanghai Local Chronicles Library, visits them all to follow in the footsteps of time.

Pudong, now renowned for its urban skyline, was once largely farmland, but the seeds of industrialization were sown along its waterfront there more than 150 years ago.

It began in the 1840s, when Shanghai’s new trade status as a treaty port nurtured a fledgling shipbuilding industry as foreign merchants were allowed to operate freely and international shipping traffic grew along the Huangpu River.

British and other foreign investors established shipyards along its banks.

Among the first of these, the British-owned Pudong Steamboat Co was founded in 1859, with extensive facilities that marked it as one of the Far East’s largest shipyards.

Equipped to manufacture ships and machinery, the company introduced steam-powered machines and advanced shipbuilding techniques.

By 1894, Pudong’s waterfront was lined with shipyards, warehouses and docks supporting Shanghai’s booming import-export trade. The city’s trade volume accounted for more than half of China’s total at that time.

The shipbuilding industry anchored the area’s development, offering job opportunities and attracting waves of workers. As infrastructure expanded, the once-rural Pudong was drawn into the momentum of industrial change.

The 1895 Treaty of Shimonoseki, also known as the Treaty of Maguan, between China and Japan allowed foreign investors to freely establish factories in China, bringing more capital into Pudong’s industrial development.

New factories were built along the Huangpu River. By the early 20th century, the area housed a mix of shipyards, textile mills and steelworks.

Pudong’s shipyards became vital for maintaining and expanding the shipping fleets that fueled Shanghai’s position as China’s main international trading port.

One major player in Pudong’s shipbuilding sector was Boyd & Co, also known as Xiangsheng Shipyard, which was founded by British entrepreneurs in 1862.

The shipyard in Lujiazui produced both commercial ships and military equipment, expanding into one of the largest and most advanced shipyards in the region.

The growth attracted workers from across China, making Lujiazui a densely populated industrial area with an active economy and a multicultural mix of residents, as noted in 1919 by the Shun Pao newspaper.

Pudong’s rapid industrialization also brought economic and social changes. Foreign companies exerted considerable control over local industries, limiting the ability of Chinese-owned businesses to compete.

Despite these challenges, some Chinese firms managed to establish themselves. For example, the Gongmao Machinery Factory, founded in 1888, produced ship components and machinery.

It laid the groundwork for an independent industrial base within Pudong’s largely foreign-dominated economy.

However, Pudong’s industrial progress was halted in 1937 with the Japanese invasion.

As Shanghai became a battleground, factories and shipyards along the river were bombed. Japanese forces occupied Pudong, repurposing its facilities for military production and turning strategic areas like Lujiazui into military zones.

During the occupation, Japanese forces seized 35 docks on both sides of the Huangpu River, including 21 in Pudong. The invaders also imposed strict economic controls that stifled local production and left most civilian industries in ruin.

The destruction along Pudong’s waterfront was severe. Neighborhoods and industrial areas were burned to the ground, leaving tens of thousands of residents displaced and unemployed.

By the time Japan’s occupation ended in 1945, Pudong’s once-thriving industries largely lay in ruin.

Attempts to revive the area’s economy in the postwar period under the Kuomintang government were stifled by high inflation and economic instability.

Yet the shipbuilding expertise developed in the 19th and early 20th centuries remained an invaluable asset.

In the late 1940s, key shipyards in Pudong became part of China’s early state-led industrialization efforts.

Today, Pudong’s shipbuilding legacy and early industry serve as a reminder of its crucial role in Shanghai’s modernization and in China’s industrial history.