Xiānghé

Xianghe lies east of Beijing on the North Canal, the final stretch of the Grand Canal towards Tongzhou. Barges carried grain and building materials through its low-lying countryside. When the water ran low in 1533, the Ming ordered a new channel dug near Guoxinzhuang to draw water from the Chaobai River. One late Ming vessel carrying bricks for the capital sank along the canal here.