Kaiping is low-lying. At the same time, due to the disrepair of water conservancy in the past, there is always the worry of being flooded every typhoon and rainstorm. In addition, the area under its jurisdiction is the junction of Xinhui, Taishan, Enping and Xinxing counties, which has always been called "four concerns", so the social order is rather chaotic. Therefore, in the early Qing Dynasty, villagers built watchtowers to prevent floods and bandits. After the Opium War, the rule of the Qing government became more decadent, and Kaiping people began to go abroad to make a living because of livelihood problems. After a generation or even several generations of efforts, they gradually have some industries. By the time of the Republic of China, wars were more frequent and bandits were particularly rampant. Because of the blend of mountains and rivers, convenient land and water transportation in Kaiping, and the relatively comfortable life of overseas Chinese and returned overseas Chinese, bandits concentrated in Kaiping area to commit crimes. Therefore, when overseas Chinese return to China, they often dare not stay at home, but go to market towns or relatives' homes, and often change their accommodation places, otherwise they will be in danger of family destruction. During the period from the first year of the Republic of China (19 12) to the fifteenth year of the Republic of China (1926), bandits robbed schools eight times and captured more than 0/00 teachers and students. However, in the 11th year of the Republic of China (1922)65438+ February, when bandits robbed Kaiping Middle School in Chikan area, they were illuminated by searchlights in Yingcun watchtower, and four township groups intercepted them in time, saving 17 principals and students. This incident caused a sensation in the county, and overseas Chinese were surprised to hear the news. They think the watchtower has played a role in preventing bandits. So, they scrimped and saved, and sent money back to their hometown to build a watchtower. Later, some overseas Chinese built various towers when they returned home to build new houses for the safety of their families and the protection of their property. Overseas Chinese, living abroad for a long time, gradually absorbed foreign architectural technology, and combined it with the architectural art of China in the process of building watchtowers, and built watchtowers with various styles that people appreciated.