Drum Tower, drum tower in Beizhen, China

The Drum Tower stands on a large rectangular platform 24 metres east-west and 20 metres north-south, pierced by a north-south arched passage. A granite stair of 39 steps at the northeast corner leads to the top, where two six-metre red flagpoles flank incense pavilions and a censer. The two-storey timber tower rises in the middle, its lower level with a surrounding gallery and the upper level holding a large drum.

A local tradition holds that the tower was originally the south gate of Shandong County in the Liao dynasty. In 1563, during the Ming Jiajing reign, the censor Wang Zhigao expanded the inner city and built the drum tower at its new centre. Under the Ming general Li Chengliang it served as a mustering platform, and in the Qing dynasty it became a shrine to fox immortals, repaired in the late Qing, the Republic and 1993.

Under the Qing dynasty the tower lost its military role and became a shrine to fox immortals (huxian), drawing worshippers who brought plaques and offerings. Seven clay fox-spirit statues were remade inside during the 1993 restoration, and plaques such as "Huaxian weiyi" (turning danger into safety) hang on the building.

The tower can be entered from north and south gates, making access straightforward from most directions. Both floors are open to explore, and information about the building's purpose is available inside.

The tower stands on a large square platform 20 m north-south and 24 m east-west, pierced by an arched north-south passage; 39 granite steps at the northeast corner lead to the top, where two 6 m red flagpoles flank incense pavilions and a censer.