Wuxue formerly Guangji County (广济县), is a county-level city

County-level city

A county-level city is a county-level administrative division of mainland China. County-level cities are usually governed by prefecture-level divisions, but a few are governed directly by province-level divisions....

 on the north shore of the Yangtze River in eastern Hubei

Hubei

' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...

 province, China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. Wuxue falls under the administration of Huanggang

Huanggang, Hubei

Huanggang City is a major municipality in eastern Hubei Province, China. It is situated to the north of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and is bounded in the north by the Dabie Shan mountain range....

 (黃冈) Municipality.

Geography

Wuxue's total population is about 580,000 and the city extends over 1,200 square kilometers, almost all of which is cultivated.

The city has Mount Lu to the east, is close to the Qizhou

Qizhou

Qizhou is a township-level division situated in Baoding, Hebei, China....

 hometown of famed ancient pharmacist Li Shizhen

Li Shizhen

Li Shizhen , courtesy name Dongbi , was one of the greatest Chinese herbologists and acupuncturists in Chinese history. His major contribution to medicine was his 27-year work, which is found in his epic book the Bencao Gangmu...

 in neighboring Qichun

Qichun

Qichun County is a county of Huanggang, Hubei, China.Qichun County is the birthplace of famous herbalist Li Shizhen, who was born and lived in Qizhou town, on the southern edge of the County, alongside the Yangtze River...

 County in the west, borders the Yangtze River in the south, and leans against the Dabie Shan

Dabie Shan

The Dabie Mountains are a major mountain range located in central China. Running northwest-to-southeast, they form the main watershed between the Huai and Yangtze rivers...

 mountain range in the north.

Wuxue is 220 kilometers downriver from the provincial capital of Wuhan

Wuhan

Wuhan is the capital of Hubei province, People's Republic of China, and is the most populous city in Central China. It lies at the east of the Jianghan Plain, and the intersection of the middle reaches of the Yangtze and Han rivers...

 and about 50 kilometers upriver from the port of Jiujiang

Jiujiang

Jiujiang , formerly transliterated Kiukiang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level city in Jiangxi province, the largest one being Nanchang...

 city, on the south side of the Yangtze in Jiangxi

Jiangxi

' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...

 province.

History

Wuxue opened as a port towards the end of the 16th century. Upon China signing the 1876 Yantai

Yantai

Yantai is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Shandong province, People's Republic of China. Located on the southern coast of the Bohai Sea and the eastern coast of the Laizhou Bay, Yantai borders the cities of Qingdao and Weihai to the southwest and east respectively.The largest fishing...

 treaty with Britain, foreign merchants established an upgraded wharf.

The port's strategic advantage lies in its proximity to the juncture of three provinces — Hubei, Anhui

Anhui

Anhui is a province in the People's Republic of China. Located in eastern China across the basins of the Yangtze River and the Huai River, it borders Jiangsu to the east, Zhejiang to the southeast, Jiangxi to the south, Hubei to the southwest, Henan to the northwest, and Shandong for a tiny...

, and Jiangxi

Jiangxi

' is a southern province in the People's Republic of China. Spanning from the banks of the Yangtze River in the north into hillier areas in the south, it shares a border with Anhui to the north, Zhejiang to the northeast, Fujian to the east, Guangdong to the south, Hunan to the west, and Hubei to...

 — and serves as a central hub for commodity trade.

The port was modernized in 1953, with further-enhanced navigational improvements in 1975 and 1980. The total length of the port waterfront is now 14 kilometers, with 23 quay berths and many large warehouses, hoists, and cranes. The port handles both commodity and passenger traffic.

Transportation

In addition to the port, Wuxue is known as the "Gateway to Three Provinces" (mentioned above). As well, it is served by the east-west inter-provincial Shanghai-Hibiscus Expressway, and is a major station on the Beijing-Guangzhou railway. A passenger ferry runs across the river and downstream to Jiujiang

Jiujiang

Jiujiang , formerly transliterated Kiukiang, is a prefecture-level city located on the southern shores of the Yangtze River in northwest Jiangxi Province, China. It is the second-largest prefecture-level city in Jiangxi province, the largest one being Nanchang...

, and Wuxue is about one hour by car from Jiujiang airport.