Tucked along the upper reaches of the Tanglang River, the Shilongba Hydropower Station Museum operates as a living piece of China’s early industrial history. Visitors arriving at the complex hear the steady rush of water blending with the mechanical hum of machinery that has been running for over a century. The site merges traditional Chinese architecture with early twentieth-century European engineering. A three-courtyard compound serves as the historical administrative center, while the power generation workshops feature thick walls built from locally quarried rectangular stone blocks. Inside the first workshop, the original 240-kilowatt hydroelectric generator set—manufactured by Germany’s Siemens and Austria’s Voith—continues to produce electricity exactly as it did when it first illuminated Kunming in 1912.

The history of Shilongba involves intense physical labor and wartime survival. In 1910, hundreds of workers hauled the massive European turbines through rugged mountain terrain using ox carts and sheer human strength. Decades later, the station became a primary target for Japanese bombers during World War II. The facility sustained four major aerial attacks. Workers repaired the damage under fire to maintain the electricity supply for military factories and the Wujiaba airport. The landscape still bears the scars of this era, most notably the 'Feilaichi,' a preserved crater left by a wartime bomb.

Today, Shilongba invites guests to walk through its active generation halls and quiet historical pavilions. The museum preserves the physical artifacts of early power generation alongside the stories of the people who built and defended the station. By observing the century-old turbines still spinning in the river's current, visitors gain a direct connection to the origins of modern Chinese industry and the enduring strength of its early builders.