Fushun is a prefecture level city in Liaoning province, China, Situated on the Hun River ("Muddy River"); it is one of the industrial and economic development hubs in Liaoning. The Jurchen (Manchu) leader Nurhaci married one of his granddaughters to the Ming dynasty General Li Yongfang after Li surrendered Fushun 1618. During the early Qing Dynasty, Fushun involved in depression for near one and a half centuries. It was in 1783 that the Fushun new city was completed southwestwards the old City. In the early 1960s, Fushun was the base of Leifeng's military unit, whose achievement of modest and dedication was set up a Communist cultural icon and became the subject of a nationwide posthumous propaganda campaign. In Fushun there is also a Lei Feng Memorial Hall, with a museum.
Fushun is a highly industrialized area and originally called City of Coal. It has developed as a thriving center for fuel, power and raw materials and is also offering more and more opportunities in textiles and electronics. The world's largest open-pit coal mine, the West Open Mine, is located south of the city. Exploited from the 12th century, it was operated as an open pit mine during the 20th and early 21st Century. Fushun has developed through the utilization of the abundant natural mineral deposits found in the area and is a nationally important heavy industrial base for petroleum, chemical, metallurgy machinery and construction material industries. New sectors also becoming prominent are electronics, light industry, weaving and spinning. At the end of 2006, the Fushun Mining Group operated the largest shale oil plant in the world, consisting of seven retorting units with 20 retorts in each unit, for a total 140 sets of Fushun type retorts. There are also two oil refineries. Fushun Petrochemical Company, a subsidiary of PetroChina, is building a refining and petrochemical complex in Fushun.
Fushun is a famous tourist centre of northeast China. With high mountains and thick woods (40% forest coverage), the city has a developed a strong tourist industry. Houshi National Forest Park, about 55 km (34 mi) from Fushun city centre, is rated by the central government as an AAAA tourist attraction. Saer Hu Scenic Area covers some 268 km2 (103 sq mi). It includes the 110 km2 (42 sq mi) Dahuofang Reservoir, the largest man-made lake in northeast China. There are a number of historic and cultural sites within the area. Fushun's success in applying for two UNESCO World Heritage sites is expected to attract more tourists. They include a site known as Xingjing City, the origin of the Qing Dynasty, which is within today's Fushun. The second site contains the Yongling tombs, where several members of the royal household are buried. In addition, Red River Valley in Fushun has become an entertainment resort, especially in summer. Tourists can travel down the river on small rubber rafts through mountain scenery; the valley is called 'the first rafting route in northern China'.
Fushun is located 40 km from Shenyang Taoxian airport. Railways and highways connect the city to Shenyang and Jilin Province. The seaports of Dalian and Yingkou are also nearby, 400 and 200 km (250 and 120 mi) away respectively, with good highway connections.
Population: 2.19 million
Temperature: average 6.6°C (43.88°F)
