Early Buildings of Tilanqiao Prison

The Tilanqiao Prison, with the full name of“Prison of Shanghai Municipal Police Force”, is commonly known as Western Prison or Foreign Prison. It was first established by the Shanghai Municipal Council in 1901 and was put into service in 1903. The original main buildingsin clude two four-storey prison buildings, 480 cells, as well as kitchens, office buildings, medical centre, etc., covering an area of about 10 mu. Since 1916, it expanded northward and eastward successively, and basically took shape in 1935. All existing buildings were built between 1917 and 1935. Covering an area of 60.4 mu, the building complexin cludes ten four to six storey prison buildings, nearly 4,000 cells, as well as workshops, hospital, kitchens, office buildings and other buildings. The prison was once known as “the first prison in the Far East” for its large scale, excellent construction and large number of prisoners.

The Tilanqiao Prison adopts the structure of “three walls and one gate”, that is, three sides are ferroconcrete walls, and one side is an iron gate. All of the cells are built in ventilated and open buildings; the prison zone is designed with wards for male prisoners, for female prisoners, for foreign prisoners and children's reformatory school, with evident characteristics of separate custody and management of a modern prison management system.

The Tilanqiao Prison was renamed “Shanghai Prison”in 1951 and in 1995, it was changed to“Shanghai TilanqiaoPrison”. A cross-shaped building in the prison was converted into the Shanghai Prison Exhibition Hall, which opened on the fifth anniversary of the promulgation and implementation of the Prison Law in 1999.

In 1994, the Tilanqiao Prison was listed as a Monument under the Protection of the Shanghai Municipality, and in 2013, it was listed in the seventh batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level.