During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal has become a traffic artery running through the north and south of China. Linqing, because it is located in the arm of a deep well and the throat of nine provinces, has developed rapidly with the prosperity of canal water transport, especially the development of commerce and handicrafts. At that time, Linqing was the largest textile trading center in northern China, with an annual sales volume of at least one million pieces. Linqing is also one of the largest grain distribution centers in northern China. The central government built a granary in Linqing to store grain and rice, and set up an organization-the warehouse supervision department of the Ministry of Housing to manage the grain storage. Linqing was also the largest tribute brick firing center in China at that time. Every year in Linqing, the central government collects "one million bricks a year" to build the mausoleum of the Forbidden City in Beijing, and sets up the Ministry of Industry to manage the firing and transportation of tribute bricks. During more than 500 years from the early Ming Dynasty to the late Qing Dynasty, Linqing tribute bricks were continuously imported into Beijing for their "sound like steel, no alkali, no corrosion and no permeability" and gained a high reputation. Linqing is also one of the tax centers in China. In Linqing, the central government of the Ming and Qing Dynasties set up a special organization to supervise the water transport tax-the tax department of the household department to manage the water transport tax. During the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, Linqing's annual tax revenue once reached more than 83,000 silver, ranking first among the seven Grand Canal customs in China.
Hundreds of years of surging canal water has flowed out of Linqing's economic prosperity and the development of Linqing culture. Architectural culture, folk culture and food culture are famous in all directions. Linqing folk houses are located along the canal in Linqing, a provincial historical and cultural city, including Jijia Courtyard, Wang Jia Courtyard, Zhao Jia Courtyard, Jia Zhu Courtyard and many other Ming and Qing folk houses, which are of great value to the study of the formation and development of canal city and canal culture in Linqing. In order to better explore the cultural heritage of the canal and build the brand of the canal, Linqing municipal government put the protection of Linqing folk houses into the focus of government work in 2008.
In February 2008, the Cultural Bureau invited experts from Shandong Cultural Relics Science and Technology Protection Center to inspect Linqing cultural relics, and entrusted the Provincial Cultural Relics Science and Technology Protection Center to carry out maintenance plans for the attic, Wang Jia Courtyard and Jijia Courtyard of Linqing County Governance Site. At the same time, the Cultural Bureau, according to the arrangement of the municipal government, contacted the departments and units of urban construction, finance, tourism, planning, housing management, city office, etc., and made an investigation and visit to the attic, Wang Jia compound and Jijia compound of the county governance site, and got a detailed understanding of the current situation and use of ancient buildings, with 86 ancient dwellings with a construction area of more than 2,600 square meters. In order to properly solve the problem of compensation and resettlement for residential demolition, Linqing City strengthened its leadership in the renovation and protection of Linqing residential buildings, made it clear that the renovation and resettlement work was led by the Municipal Cultural Bureau, and established the "Wang Jia and Jijia Courtyard Renovation, Demolition and Resettlement Headquarters" with the participation of urban construction, land management, finance, planning, demolition and housing management departments, and the headquarters office was located in Qianguan.
Linqing ancient folk houses perfectly reflect the architectural style of Ming and Qing Dynasties and the characteristics of folk houses in northwest Shandong. They are important physical materials for the study of canal culture, urban development, trade circulation, family life and even social development, and are an important part of Linqing, a famous historical and cultural city. In recent years, more than ten ancient dwellings in Linqing have been successively announced as Liaocheng-level and Linqing-level cultural relics protection units. Linqing was a famous commercial city along the canal in Ming and Qing Dynasties. Among the cities along the northern canal, Linqing's economic development level, role and position are particularly prominent. At one time, it became one of the 33 big cities in China and one of the five major commercial ports in Jiangbei, and was known as "a military location, a throat for water transportation and a commercial metropolis". Due to the development of the city and the prosperity of commercial trade, some local and foreign officials and businessmen regard Linqing as a place to live and work in peace and contentment, thus building houses here. Linqing dwellings in Ming and Qing Dynasties are located along the canal, surrounded by dense residents, criss-crossing streets and hutongs, and the dwellings are quaint, which perfectly embodies the architectural style of Ming and Qing Dynasties and the characteristics of Han dwellings in northwest Shandong. These houses are orderly, compact and regular in layout, ingenious in overall structure, harmonious and decent, and have the characteristics of the times in architectural modeling, which perfectly embodies the architectural characteristics of Han folk houses in western Shandong. Well-preserved ones are Ji Family Courtyard, Wang Family Courtyard, Sun Family Courtyard, Zhao Family Courtyard and Zhu Family Courtyard. Most of them are Ming and Qing architecture.