Immaculate Conception Church, Hongqiao

Hongqiao Church (虹桥天主堂, Hóngqiáo Tiānzhǔtáng) belongs to Lüxiang (吕巷, Lǚxiàng) in the southwest of Jinshan. When it was finished in 1905 the Jinshan gazetteer called it the first church of the Punan region, the area south of the Huangpu.

A mission that started in a rented house

The gazetteer says a French missionary rented a house at Gaojiazhai in Lüxiang in the Xianfeng years. In 1904 Yao Amei and others gave four mu of land, and local Catholics later added 48 mu of farmland to support the church. A church of 24 rooms was built at the south end of Caihong Bridge, then extended by 16 rooms. It was finished in 1905, and 8 December was fixed as the church’s anniversary.

What did a head church do?

Hongqiao belonged to the Nanqiao deanery and was the head church for eleven outstations, among them Donglinbang, Songjiashe, Zhujing and Xiqiangjie, with 2,752 Catholics in all. The head priest toured the outstations to say Mass and teach. A private primary school, Cihong, was attached and closed after 1954.

Closure and reopening

The church was occupied during the Cultural Revolution and its annexes were pulled down. In 1986 the church and six new annex rooms were returned to the diocese. After repairs in 1989, it reopened on 29 November 1990. On 9 December Vice-Bishop Li Side led the ceremony before more than 1,500 Catholics.

What to look for

In 1995 the site measured 2,547 square metres with 729.67 square metres built. The church, with a bell tower attached, is described as Gothic in style. Two details to check: the tower, which the gazetteer lists together with the church, and the compound’s edge, where the farmland of the original donations once lay.