Presbyterian Mission Station, Xuzhou, China
1921, 3 New houses, F. A. Brown's in the Middle
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Same location, 2018
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The 1921 photo shows three brand new missionary houses in Xuzhou, Shandong Province, now Jiangsu Province due to boundary change. The middle house is the Brown's, torn down several years ago. One house remains in 2026, the Lancaster's, preserved as a museum surrounded by mission institutions. Side picture is from close to if not the exact same spot in 2018. The compound is in the trees just to the left of the large white building in the center.
Xuzhou was the site of major battles with the Japanese Imperial Army in 1936 heroicaly stayed with and the climactic Huai Hai seige campaign of 1948-9 won by Mao's Red Army. That was one of the costliest fights in world history. Charlotte and Frank Brown were ther.e for the battle and occupation by the Japanse. Frank was there twelve years later for the siege and occupation by the PLA. He was managing a hospital and doing relief work. He was detained under house arrest but survived and was allowed to return to the U.S.
Xuzhou is now a large rail hub city with over ten million inhabitants. The mission projects continue although under different managment, including large churhes, state-run schools, and a large modern hospital.
This project will explore with personal pictures the incredible happenings here spanning more than a hundred years.
This 1921 photo shows three brand new missionary houses in Xuzhou, Shandong Province, now Jiangsu Province due to boundary change. The middle house is the Brown's, torn down several years ago. One house remains in 2026, the Lancaster's, preserved as a museum surrounded by mission institutions. Picture below is from the same spot in 2018.
Xuzhou was the site of major battles with the Japanese Imperial Army in 1936 heroicaly stayed with and the climactic Huai Hai seige campaign of 1948-9 won by Mao's Red Army. That was one of the costliest fights in world history. Charlotte and Frank Brown were ther.e for the battle and occupation by the Japanse. Frank was there twelve years later for the siege and occupation by the PLA. He was managing a hospital and doing relief work. He was detained under house arrest but survived and was allowed to return to the U.S.
Xuzhou is now a large rail hub city with over ten million inhabitants. The mission projects seem to be recovering, including large churhes, and state-run schools and a large hospital.
This project will explore with personal pictures the incredible happenings here spanning more than a hundred years. See the photo tab for updates.
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