In 1949, G. William Skinner, a Cornell University graduate student, set off for southwest China to conduct field research on rural social structure. He settled near the market town of Gaodianzi, Sichuan, and lived there for two and a half months, until the newly arrived Communists asked him to leave. During his time in Sichuan, Skinner kept detailed field notes and took scores of photos of rural life and unfolding events.

Skinner went on to become a giant in his fieldhis obituary inAmerican Anthropologist called him the worlds most influential anthropologist of China. A key portion of his legacy arose from his Sichuan fieldwork, contained in his classic monographMarketing and Social Structure in Rural China. Although the Peoples Liberation Army confiscated Skinners research materials, some had been sent out in advance and were discovered among the files donated to the University of Washington Libraries after his death. Skinners notes and photos bring to life this rare glimpse of rural China on the brink of momentous change.

G. William Skinner (19252008) was the dean of sinological anthropology in the West, a major theorist of family systems, and a pioneer in applying spatial analysis techniques to the study of agrarian societies. Stevan Harrell, professor of anthropology and environmental and forest sciences at the University of Washington, is the author ofWays of Being Ethnic in Southwest China. William Lavely, professor of international studies and sociology at the University of Washington, is the author of many articles on demography and the family in contemporary China.

Preface / Stevan Harrell and William Lavely

Acknowledgments

Maps

1. The Road to Gaodianzi: JuneNovember 1949

2. Settling In: November 1226

3. A Household Survey and Rumors of the Communists: November 28December 16

4. Working Out the Market Network as the PLA Approaches: December 1324

5. Liberation! December 27January 3

6. The Communists and the Temples: January 513

7. The Last Dongyue Temple Festival: January 1517

8. The Premature End of Fieldwork: January 1825

Epilogue: JanuaryMay 1950

Afterword / Zhijia Shen