Tobacco Plantation And Social Changes Of Economy In Xuchang District (1915to1936)

During the Republic period of China, there generally appeared the phenomenon of deepeningcommercialization of agricultural, tense relation between land and people, agricultural involution, on theaspect of agricultural business in Henan province. Under the circumstance, the Xuchang city which locatedin the central of Henan began to strive to develop its tobacco plantation industry along with the increasingdemand at home and abroad, based on its special geographical advantage. Especially after the tobaccoproduced by Xiangcheng County got a prize in the "Panama Exposition" in1915, Xuchang tobaccobecame famous overnight, and it had a rapid development period during the next20years inspired by thetobacco companies at home and abroad. At the same time, the development of tobacco plantation industryhas had a significant and positive effect on various aspect of the social life in Xuchang district, such as inthe agriculture field, it has promoted the change in the crop planting structure and farmer’s life; in theindustrial field, it has promoted the rise and development of the flue-curd tobacco industry, cigaretteindustry, ect, and led to some farmers enter the city and turn to industrial workers; in the business world,along with the tobacco plantation, Xuchang turned to the tobacco trade and distribution center gradually,while promoting the development of the local financial and other business departments. Overall, becauseof the development of tobacco industry during1915to1936, the economy presented a developmentmomentum in Xuchang, and the city development trend changed the traditional farming type anddispersion status, as well as developed toward the industrial type and centralized type.