A Team of Trackers on a Yangzi River Bank

Item

Title
A Team of Trackers on a Yangzi River Bank
Caption
Tracking Up a Rapids
Identifier
SEFA_053
Alternative Identifier
Simpson Album p11
Description
A large team of trackers seen from a boat on the river pulling an unseen boat on the river behind the camera. The team is divided into three fan groups, consisting of about thirty-eight men. Amidst large boulders on the shore behind, there are makeshift houses of bamboo mats that will be dismantled when the water is high.
Creator
E. Kyle Simpson
Date Created
Between 1913-03-10 and 1913-03-22
Location
Yangtze Gorges
Original Format
Photographic print
Source
Courtesy of Kyle Jolliffe
Provenance
E. Kyle Simpson photos curated by Alice Estabrook Simpson - captions written by her. In the care of Kyle Jolliffe.
Publisher
SIUE
Record Date
2026-09-29
Contributor
Cory Willmott; Kyle Jolliffe
Type
Still Image
References
"Taking a vessel of such large size up a river whose depth varies as much as one hundred feet in certain seasons of the year is no very small task. If the wind is favorable, the men have an easy time, sitting on deck and whistling to the wind god. Sometimes they must throw out a rope and track, and sometimes at a rapid it is necessary to engage extra men. These trackers, as they are called, climbing over rocks or boulders, now finding their way along a narrow ledge of rock in the gorge, or again in a moment swimming out to to release a fastened cable or to carry a fresh cable to shore when one has accidentally been broken - these men thus make possible this unique and remarkable journey."
1913 Letter from Dr. E. Kyle Simpson, Chungking, West China
Resource class
Image