Gāoqiáo

Gaoqiao was an outlying administrative station of Haizhou. The Ming Haizhou gazetteer places its patrol inspectorate north of Bowang du, ninety li west of the prefectural seat. Established in 1368, the station had a three-bay official hall, rooms for its staff, two storerooms, a prison room, a gate building and residential quarters.

The gazetteer also assigned four coastal beacon posts to Gaoqiao. These connected a small inland office with the wider defence and surveillance of the Haizhou coast. Gaoqiao, Donghai and Huize each had a patrol inspector of the subordinate ninth rank. Such details preserve the modest scale of local government: a low-ranking official, a few working rooms and a holding cell, supported by watch posts beyond the station. Gaoqiao's place in Ming Haizhou can therefore be seen through a specific institution and its coastal responsibilities.