Tongling

Tongling, city and industrial centre, southern Anhui sheng (province), eastern China. It is located on the southeast bank of the Yangtze River (Chang Jiang) between Anqing and Wuhu.

Tongling grew into an industrial city of consequence only in the second half of the 20th century, but it has been a mining centre since at least the 7th century ce. The Tongguanshan copper mines take their name from the official mint and copper-mining bureau originally established there. Under the Song dynasty (960–1279) there was a special industrial prefecture named Liguojian. During the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), iron mining and smelting also began; the operations were greatly expanded in the 18th century. In 1902 mining rights there were obtained by British interests, but no exploitation followed. During the period of Japanese occupation (1938–45), copper mining was revived on a moderate scale, the ore being sent to Manchuria (Northeast China) for smelting.

After 1949 the mines were modernized and a smelter built to produce crude copper, which was sent elsewhere for further refining. Large new copper deposits subsequently were discovered in the vicinity. In 1959–60 iron mining and smelting were again begun on a large scale, and a chemical industry was also established. There are also rich veins of gold and silver ore in the area, and gold mining has been developed. Other major industries include cement, textiles, and electronics. Tongling depended on the Yangtze River for transport until 1969, at which time a railroad connected the city with Wuhu downstream and farther to Nanjing (in Jiangsu province) and Shanghai. A bridge spanning the Yangtze was completed at Tongling in 1995, transforming the city into a regional highway hub. Since then, expressways have been built north to Hefei, the provincial capital, and south to Huangshan, the southernmost city in the province. Pop. (2002 est.) 322,960.