Version 1.0 2 Dec 2011. Jerry Tse. London. All rights reserved. Rights belong to their respective owners. Available free for non-commercial and personal use.

The Historical Three GorgesAn historical perspective.

Wu Gorge

歷史三峽

LIFE 1956

In 1946, Dmitri Kessel lived on the Yangtze River for 7 months and took a series of photos of the Three Gorges. Some of this collection were published 10 years later in the LIFE magazine.

Dmitri Kessel (1902-1995) was born in Kiev, Ukraine. For many years he worked as a photographer and a war correspondent for LIFE magazine. Other photo collections of his included WW II, the Greek Civil war, the Andes , mining in Central Africa and portraits of royalty.

Overloaded sampan operated for the local traffic.

Tracker’s path

Kessel even imagined a dam can be built in the Three Gorges.

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Wu Gorge 巫峽

“I have no home; my body is my home. But I am an old good. I shall stay on boats, and there will always be someone to hire me and when I am old, all my brothers in the boatmen’s guild and all the captains on the riverside who know me will give me a few coppers in payment for the friendship. I have hoarded for them. I will have plenty. I will have a fine funeral.” the tracker said. LIFE 11 June 1956 p141.

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Trackers’ path on the cliff for towing boats upstream.

Meng Cheng was a streamer, a victim of the Yangtze rapids.

Low water and foaming rapids appeared in the dry season of the year.

Rowers working through the rapids.

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Qutang Gorge 瞿 塘峽

The well-known view of the entrance to the gorge.

Qutang Gorge 瞿 塘峽

Baidi city 白帝城

Zhibaozhai 石寶寨

National Geographic

1948

In 1948, Robert Moore published an article on the National Geographic Magazine, with photos he took travelled on the Yangtze River.

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Nationalist soldiers playing cards on a streamer. These could the soldiers that stopped the Japanese advance in the WW II at Shibei.

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Fleet of Junks near the town of Fengkieh in the background.

River barges tied themselves to a streamer travelling on the Yangtze near Chongqing.

Chongqing 重慶

Views Today

Xiling Gorge 西陵 Shibei well known for repelling the Japanese advance on Chongqing in WWII. 石牌

Xiling Gorge 西陵

Three Gorge Dam 三峽大壩

Three Gorge Dam 三峽大壩 Clean electricity

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Wu Gorge 巫峽

Qutang Gorge 瞿塘峽

Qutang Gorge 瞿塘峽

Baidi city 白帝城

Music – Voices composed by Vangelis (Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou), from his album . Vooices.

All rights reserved. Rights belong to their respective owners. Available free for non-commercial and personal use.

The End