Stone GateThe Shikumen (Simplified Chinese: 石库门), or literally "stone gate" is a style of housing in Shanghai, China, which blended features of east and west. In the past up to 80% of the city's population lived in these types of houses, but today the proportion is much lower.Each residence is connected and arranged in straight alleys, with the entrance to each alley, the gate, wrapped by a stylistic stone arch. The Shikumen is a cultural blend of the elements found in Western architecture with traditional Lower Yangtze Chinese architecture and social behavior. All traditional Chinese dwellings had a courtyard, and the Shikumen was no exception. Yet, to compromise with its urban nature, it was much smaller and provided an "interior haven" to the commotions in the streets, allowing for raindrops to fall and vegetation to grow freely within a residence. The courtyard also allowed sunlight and adequate ventilation into the rooms.This style of housing originally developed when local developers adapted terrace houses to Chinese conditions. The wall was added to protect against fighting and looting during the Taiping rebellion, and later burglars and vandals during the social upheavals of the early twentieth century. By World War II, more than 80% of the population in the city lived in these kinds of dwellings. Many of these were hastily built and were akin to slums, while others were of sturdier construction and featured all modern amenities such as the flush toilet.During and after World War II, massive population increases in Shanghai led many shikumen houses to be heavily subdivided. For example, the spacious living room is often divided into three or four rooms, each lent out to a family. These cramped conditions continue to exist in many of the shikumen districts that have survived recent development.The landlords who leased (subletted) the shikumen out to other families were called "èrfángdōng"(二房东), or "second landlord" as many of them acquired the shikumen buildings from its original owner ("dàfángdōng"大房东). These landlords families usually share the same shikumen building with the tenants.石库门是一种从传统四合院建筑风格演变出来的另一派建筑风格。在19世纪中,上海的居民将原来传统的木框改为一对乌漆的大门,外门则选用既稳固入突显身份的石料作门框,所以便称之为「石库门」。中共一大会址,一座石库门建筑当时的上海正值列强分据的局面,西方的建筑细部和中国传统建筑装饰加以融合,成为上海近代史上一个独特的时代产物。石库门建筑一直在上海见证一个半世纪翻天覆地的变迁。在1980年代中国改革开放,外资再度涌入上海,经济发展令到这些石库门建筑随著一个又一个旧社区重建而拆掉,情况跟发展北京而拆掉很多胡同一样。现只有上海的新旅游点新天地有把这些石库门建筑融成为主题游闲区。