Geumseong

Geumseong was a county of inland Gangwon, between the districts of Gim-hwa and Hoeyang. The fifteenth-century geographical account in King Sejong's annals describes cold weather and dry soil: only a tiny portion of its cultivated land was paddy. Millet, beans and barley suited this country better than an image of uninterrupted rice fields. Hemp, mulberry and paper mulberry also appear among its products, while honey, wax, pine nuts, medicinal plants and animal skins entered the county's tribute obligations.

Royal government reached Geumseong through a county magistrate and a network of roads and signals. The annals list three relay stations and three beacon sites, connecting it with neighboring districts. One station, Changdo, was formed in the early fifteenth century by combining older establishments; its name joined elements of their names. Jikmok station stood on the route linking Cheorwon, Geumseong and Hoeyang. Couriers, horses and beacon fires thus gave this mountain county a place within the kingdom's communications, while its fields and woodland products supplied the people and obligations of provincial government.