The train whistle still echoes

There was a time when Saigon - Gia Dinh - Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) woke up and started a new day with the resounding train whistle, signaling the start of the shift at Ba Son Factory. To this day, among the magnificent buildings, towering over Bach Dang Wharf, many people still talk about Ba Son as an inseparable part of the city's memory.

Part of the Ba Son Factory relic site, at 2 Ton Duc Thang Street, Saigon Ward, Ho Chi Minh City, where locals and tourists often come to visit and take photos. Photo: HOANG HUNG

Memories not too far away

For many middle-aged people living and working in Ho Chi Minh City, Ba Son is not only a shipyard, a historical site, but also a part of the city's people. Tens of thousands of cadres, workers and laborers have grown up here, attached to each shift, each ship leaving the dock. Hundreds of families with 3-4 generations have worked in succession at the "second home full of affection" Ba Son in many historical periods.

Mr. Kieu Dang Thanh Quy, Deputy Head of Materials Department, Ba Son Corporation, recalls: “When I was in 5th grade, my father, a Ba Son worker, died in a work accident. The factory leaders supported and took care of me and my siblings so that we could continue our studies. After graduating from Cao Thang Technical School, in 1998 I went to work at Ba Son, with my brother continuing the tradition of Ba Son workers. The unit created conditions for me to study, graduated from Ho Chi Minh City University of Technical Education and was transferred to the Professional Army, selected to join the officer team, currently holding the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. I want to stay with Ba Son until retirement, like my brother…”.

In 2016, implementing the policy of investing in the development of the Defense Industry in general and Ba Son Corporation in particular, and in developing infrastructure and urban areas of Ho Chi Minh City, Ba Son Corporation decided to move its military base and factory from the center of Ho Chi Minh City to Phu My 2 Industrial Park, Tan Thanh District, Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province (now Phu My Ward, Ho Chi Minh City). The towering docks, the towering cranes, or the stream of workers in blue uniforms entering and leaving their shifts amid the bustling sound of ship whistles, the resounding sound of ship whistles signaling arrival and departure gradually faded into the past.

However, in the memory of many people, the name Ba Son Factory has never faded. Mr. Tran Tien Duc (residing in Tan Phu ward, Ho Chi Minh City) shared: Every time I take my child across Ba Son bridge, Ba Son metro station, I tell him that Ba Son is not only the cradle of our country's shipbuilding industry, but also a place associated with the revolutionary struggle movement of the Vietnamese working class, where Uncle Ton Duc Thang used to work and do revolutionary activities, where the city's people still call it by the intimate name "Ba Son Factory - Uncle Ton Factory". Teaching children to love the city is to start with the place names.

Accompanying the city's development

Attached to the land of Saigon - Gia Dinh - Ho Chi Minh City since 1791 (formerly Chu Su Shipyard), through more than 230 years of history, Ba Son has not only marked its role as one of the first shipbuilding establishments in the country, but also a symbol of the strong military-civilian relationship. Since the country's reunification, Ba Son has always accompanied Ho Chi Minh City in terms of industrial development and many practical social activities.

Ba Son Corporation is one of the typical military units that has done a good job of gratitude and social security in the city named after Uncle Ho. The unit has taken care of 9 Vietnamese Heroic Mothers, regularly contributed to the funds "For the poor", "Repaying gratitude", "For the homeland's sea and islands - For the frontline of the Fatherland" ... Ba Son is also a unit that has left many impressions in the hearts of the city's people with typical sports and cultural activities such as: football tournament, volleyball tournament, Mekong Delta Cycling Cup, 9th Hour ..., contributing to the rich spiritual life in Ho Chi Minh City.

Expressing the close relationship between Ba Son and the city, comrade Phan Van Binh, Party Secretary and Chairman of Ba Son Corporation, affirmed: “Being a part of the historical flow of Ho Chi Minh City, accompanying the development of the city named after Uncle Ho is a great pride, a sacred responsibility that the Ba Son collective always cherishes. That affection cannot be measured by time or numbers, but is preserved, cultivated and passed on through each generation of Ba Son cadres and workers”.

Today, August 4, 2025, Ba Son Corporation held a ceremony to celebrate the 100th anniversary of its traditional day (August 4, 1925 - August 4, 2025). At the ceremony, Ba Son Corporation will receive the First Class Fatherland Protection Medal - a noble award from the Party and the State; Traditional Flag of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, Certificate of Merit from the Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee for its achievements in building and developing the city.

LOVE

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/tieng-coi-tau-con-vang-vong-post806724.html