Beigan, Lienchiang


Beigan Township, is an insular rural township in Lienchiang County, Taiwan. The township is in the East China Sea off the coast of Fujian Province, China near Fuzhou. Beigan Island, the main island of the township, is the second largest island in the Matsu Islands. Other smaller islands in the township include Daqiu Island, known for its Formosan sika deer, and Gaodeng Island and Liang Island which are off-limits to the public. The native language many of the inhabitants is Matsu dialect which is one of the statutory languages for public transport announcements in the Matsu Islands.

Name

Beigan Township is named for Beigan Island, the main island in the township. Beigan Island has also been known as Pei-kan Tang / Peikantang, Changche shan / Changqidao and Ch'ang-hsü Shan. In Song and Ming records, Beigan Island was called Xiagantang/Xiagantangshan as opposed to Nangan Island, which was called Shanggantang/Shanggantangshan.

History

Prehistoric settlement of Beigan dates back over six-thousand years before present.
Fishing villages were established on Beigan Island during the Song and Yuan dynasties.
In the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty, the island was abandoned several times due to the Great Clearance edicts. Pirates were often seen in the area.
In 1754, a watchtower was in place on Beigan Island.
In 1869, the Qing government erected tablets in Tangqi and Qiaozi villages concerning salt taxes.

Republic of China

On August 18, 1928 during the middle of the night, the previous several days of torrential rain caused a landslide in Qiaozi resulting in the deaths of more than thirty people. One resident was rescued three days after the landslide. A family of eight was wiped out.
In 1934, a lianbao was created encompassing the inhabitants of the islands of Nangan, Beigan, Daqiu, Xiaoqiu, Gaodeng, Xiyang and Dongyong. Later, Xiyang and Dongyong were divided into a separate lianbao.
On September 10, 1937, Japan occupied Beigan and Nangan.
Beigan's vast resources of fish attracted many coastal Fujian residents to settle in the area to fish. In 1949, with the establishment of the People's Republic of China in Mainland China, Matsu was separated from the mainland and was subsequently incorporated under Lienchiang County by the Government of the Republic of China.
In the early 1950s, skirmishes between Nationalist and Communist forces occurred near Gaodeng Island.
On December 12, 1950, Beigan District was established as part of the Matsu Administrative Commission. The county government and baojia system was ended. On August 15, 1953, Lienchiang County government was reestablished including Beigan Township.
On May 31, 1955, a Chinese Communist motor torpedo boat was engaged to the northeast of Beigan Island.
On October 25, 1967, Chinese Communist shelling at Tangqi Village lead to the death of one nineteen year-old, injury of six others and the destruction of three buildings.
On May 3, 1977, and May 2 and September 28, 1980, President Chiang Ching-kuo visited the township.
In 1994, the Beigan Airport was built on Beigan Island.
On June 17, 1994 and again on August 31, 1996, President Lee Teng-hui visited the township.
On August 10, 1997, Formosa Airlines Flight 7601 crashed on Beigan Island. All of the crew and passengers died.
On November 17, 2000, President Chen Shui-bian visited the township.
In 2011, prehistoric human skeletons were found on Liang Island.
On January 19, 2013, President Ma Ying-jeou visited the township.
In 2013, the movie 100 Days was filmed in Qinbi Village.

Geography

Beigan Township is located approximately northwest of Taiwan Island. The township is located to the north of Nangan and is the second largest island in the Matsu Islands. At their closet points, Beigan Island and Nangan Island are within of each other. The population center of Beigan is Tangqi village and is the place where major shops and restaurant are located.
Beigan is a long and narrow island with tall mountains. Its highest peak is Bishan , standing at above sea level, which is the highest point in the Matsu Islands. The terrain of the rest of the island rises and falls with large numbers of sandy beaches and outlying islands.
The main island of Beigan Township is Beigan Island, which is in area. Minor islands include Gaodeng Island, Daqiu Island, Liang Island and Xiaoqiu Island . The northernmost and easternmost points of Beigan Township are on Liang Island, the westernmost point is on Jinyu, and the southernmost point is on Queshi. Other islands include Wumingdao, Qiaotou, Jinyu, Langyan / Liang Reef, Sanlianyu, Zhongdao, Geli Dao which is now connected to southern Beigan Island by a causeway and Luoshan and Bangshan which are near the northeastern coast of Beigan Island. There is a small island just a few meters off the beach of Qinbi which is about 5m high called Turtle Island.

Politics and government

Administrative divisions

Since the restoration of the county government on August 15, 1953, Beigan Township has been divided into 6 villages:

Mayors

Since 1951, Beigan Township has had seventeen mayors:
  1. Wang Shih-Fang Jan 1951-Dec 1953
  2. Lin Sheng-Yen Dec 1953-Sep 1954
  3. Lin Shou-Chi Sep 1954-Sep 1955
  4. Cheng Tseng-Yuan Sep 1955-Sep 1956
  5. Yang I-Cheng Sep 1956-5 Nov 1957
  6. Yang Tso-Yung 5 Nov 1957-1 Aug 1960
  7. Chen Shou-Wei 1 Aug 1960-21 Feb 1962
  8. Yu Te-Chu 21 Feb 1962-10 Mar 1962, also mayor of Nangan
  9. Pan Fu 10 Mar 1962-2 Jul 1962, former and later mayor of Nangan
  10. Chen I-Peng 2 Jul 1962-19 May 1970, later mayor of Juguang and then Nangan
  11. Li Kuei-Li 19 May 1970-1 Jan 1978, former mayor of Juguang
  1. Wang Li-Teng 1 Jan 1978-1 Mar 1982
  2. Huang Chi-Chung 1 Mar 1982-1 Mar 1990
  3. Wang Shih-Chien 1 Mar 1990-1 Mar 1998
  4. Wang Chao-Sheng 1 Mar 1998-1 Mar 2006
  5. Chou Jui-Ko 1 Mar 2006-24 Dec 2014
  6. Chen Ju-Lan 24 Dec 2014–present, in 2014 ran against Wu Chin-Ping, ran unopposed in 2018

    Economy

There are branches of 7-Eleven at the villages of Tangqi and Banli and several other shops on the island. With the withdrawal of most of the military forces, the main source of income is now tourism, with several hotels in Tangqi, and numerous B&Bs in Qinbi and Qiaozi. There are no banks on the island of Beigan, but the Chunghwa Post office has an ATM.

Education

There is one middle school and two elementary schools on Beigan Island.
The library of Beigan opens daily from Wednesday to Sundays with the exception of national holidays.

Medical Institutions

Air

The Matsu Beigan Airport links the Matsu Islands and Taiwan Island at Taipei Songshan Airport and Taichung Airport.

Sea

The township houses the Beigan Harbor. There are commercial boat rides from Nangan regularly every 10 to 15 minutes. Boats from the Port of Keelung on Taiwan Island regularly visit Nangan, and from Nangan one can take the ferry to Beigan.
Starting 23 December 2015, there will be direct ferry service between Beigan and Huangqi in Lianjiang County, Fuzhou, Fujian, Mainland China.

Road

Roads in Beigan are served by taxi or rented cars and buses. Scooters can also be rented from several places.

Gallery