several-hundred-meter-long alley in Songjiang, Shanghai has reverberated for generations to the sound of footsteps. But times are changing.

Once known as “Pavilion Bridge Alley” or “Tingqiao Alley,” Wazi Alley is located to the east of Tongbotang River, one of the five rivers in ancient Songjiang. It runs from Zhongshan East Road in the south to Ledu Road in the north and used to be the main northern route out of Songjiang, so it is also referred to as “North Road” or “Beinei Road.” These days, it is a modern road about 700 meters long and 10 meters wide.

“Wazi,” which means “socks” in Chinese, indicates how the alley got its name.

The story of the district was recorded by a man called Fan Lian, who lived in ancient Songjiang during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). In his book he says that laborers at that time wore socks made of woolen felt in summer. But they were too hot for the summer temperatures. Then people began to make summer socks with a kind of soft, closely-woven cotton cloth specially produced in Songjiang. These cotton socks were thin, light, cool and beautiful, and as their fame spread, merchants came from far and wide to purchase them. 

“There are more than 100 summer sock shops in the western suburbs of the county town and all the men and women there make socks for a living,” the book states. The county town referred to by Fan Lian is now the site of Songjiang No.2 High School, a top Shanghai school, and Wazi Alley sits a little to the west of it.

Historical records confirm that Wazi Alley was the heart of the summer socks trade in Songjiang.

During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Songjiang textile industry prospered and Wazi Alley was one of China’s most creative production sites. It helped to connect Songjiang County with Suzhou City not far away, influencing the economic development of the whole country at that time.

“Wazi Alley is an integral part of the splendid history and culture of Songjiang and the earliest emergence of Chinese capitalism,” Qian Mingguang, former deputy director of the Publicity Department of the Songjiang Committee, wrote in his article “Fond Memories of Wazi Alley”. “It is the only historical site that confirms Songjiang’s former position as the center of the national cotton textile industry.”

According to old-timers from the district, before the founding of New China, the alley still had a few active sock factories. In the early 1950s, bungalows and small shops could still be seen on the west side of the road. In the 1950s and 1960s, these houses began to be demolished to make way for new construction.

Gong Mei, 46, who came to Songjiang to work in 1997, recalled that the streets around Wazi Alley were still busy then, but now the only trace of the former sock glory is a handicraft factory a block away.

In the third national cultural relics survey, a well-preserved old building was found in the alley, and confirmed to be a hosiery factory dating from the Republic of China era (1912-1949). This is the only industrial building in Songjiang from that period, and is of exceptional historical value.

“Wazi Alley is famous for its trees,” Gong said. “Walking under the trees in the summer, you are protected from direct sunlight.”

In 1951, Wazi Alley was widened to 10 meters and was lined with Chinese wingnut and parasol trees. In 2001, a green belt was built along the east bank of Tongbotang River, turning the alley into a leisure and entertainment area.

Halfway along the road is a small lane named Qiujiawan east where the famous Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus is located. Gong said there used to be many small shops but most have now been demolished.

The Songjiang County Hostel, a popular spot for visitors from other provinces and other countries, which used to sit on the east side of the south entrance of the alley, was later transformed into the Songjiang Hotel.

Now, a park named G60 Minian stands on one side of the alley. There is a large gym, a teahouse, a space design shop and many youth education centers, adding modern facilities to the original ancient area.

There is also a cafe in the park. The owner, who worked in a design company before coming to Wazi Alley in 2018, said she was attracted by the “special character” of the place as soon as she discovered it.

“I am not a native of Songjiang, I am an outsider with a soft spot for Wazi Alley,” she said. “When I saw the winding paths here, it was as if I had found a unique area different from the rest of the city.”

Wazi Alley is one of the many old streets and lanes in Songjiang, Shanghai. Some of them were widened to become arterial roads, while others have retained their residential character and their memories. Beneath the din of the traffic, if you listen closely, you might still hear the patter of felt-covered feet.