Qing Dynasty period during the
Boxer Rebellion period showing German troops departing the "Old Dragon Head" railway station (老龍頭車站), the former name of the Nanjing Station. In 1888, the
Kaiping Tramway and Imperial Railways of North China was extended to
Tianjin and was subsequently renamed as the Jintang Railway (津唐铁路), becoming the first
train station completed in China at the time. Construction of the railroad had begun in 1886 and was situated near the
Hai River. In May 1891, a larger station was built to the west and a civil structure contained a three-storey building. During the
Boxer Rebellion in June 1900, the
Eight-Nation Alliance besieged
Tianjin and battled the Boxers in the black bamboo forest outside the
British and
French Concession. During the ten days of fighting, the "Old Dragon Head" railway station and other station buildings were also destroyed. By July 1900, the armies of the
Eight-Nation Alliance occupied Tianjin and the east coast of the rail station became the occupied zone of the
Russian army. By December that same year, the
Russian Concession was opened and the rail station was now located within the boundaries of the concession. This was strongly opposed by the British and in the end, through the intermediation of Germany, the Russians eventually gave in.
Republic of China period After the
Jinghu railway and
Tianjin West Station was constructed in 1911, the old Tianjin Station was renamed the
Tianjin East Station, and the Tianjin Railway was categorised into the North, East and West Stations. The Tianjin East Station later became the
Jingha railway and intersected the
Jinpu railway line. On 10 October 1930, The Tianjin East Station was listed among the international train stations at the time. During the period from 1916 to 1946 the Tianjin East Station was approved by the
Republic of China Ministry of Railways as a first-class station, and the principal station was upgraded in 1927.
People's Republic of China period After the establishment of the People's Republic of
China throughout the country in 1949, the
Tianjin East Station was renamed the
Tianjin Station and since then, successive inspections by the
Ministry of Railways have classified it as a top grade station. In 1950, the Tianjin Station waiting rooms were expanded by more than , and for thirty years there were no further large-scale expansion works undertaken. After the
reform and opening up, the burden of transportation on the Tianjin Station increasied due to the sharp increase in passenger traffic; the average daily number of passengers was 65,000. After receiving from the
State Council and the
Ministry of Railways, the
Tianjin Municipal Government decided to expand the "Tianjin Railway Improvement Project" and this item was also included among the key projects in the national "
Seventh Five-Year Plan". Starting on 15 April 1987, thorough renovation work was conducted on Tianjin Railway Station. New roofing was constructed on the original site of the old station house and also on the cylindrical
clock tower, face
Hai River. The construction work was completed on 25 September 1988. On the eve 1 October of that same year, which was the centenary of the establishment of the Tianjin Station, the then
Minister of Railways Li Senmao (李茂森) cut the
ribbon and officially opened the new station building of the Tianjin Station. The new renovations had increased the Tianijn Station's daily receiving passenger capacity from 46 pairs to 95 pairs and was one of the most advanced modern
railway stations in China at the time. As a co-host city of the
2008 Beijing Olympics, in order to coordinate the hosting of the Games along with the construction of the
Beijing–Tianjin intercity railway and the
Tianjin Underground Zhijing Line (
天津地下直径线) as well as the introduction of the Jin-Qin Passenger Dedicated Line (
津秦客运专线), Tianjin City launched the construction of the "Tianjin Station Traffic Junction". On 15 January, Tianjin Railway Station closed for the first time since its previous reconstruction in 1988. To ensure the project reconstruction could proceed smoothly, the Railway Station's passenger operations were temporarily halted and the
bus station of Tianjin (known as the Tianjin Passenger Technology Station) was converted into the "Temporary Passenger Station in Tianjin Station" and was formally put into use as a temporary substitute for traffic. At the same time, the majority of Tianjin Railway Station's
bus terminals were moved to the
Yueya River train station (
月牙河火车站). ==Networks==