This park is located on the site of the former palace of Zhu Yuanzhang, first Emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Built from 1366-84 it was apparently a very impressive palace. There were the Imperial Ancestral Temple, the state altar and all facilities of the imperial palace. When Zhu Di moved the capital from Nanjing to Beijing, he built Beijing Imperial Palace in imitation of Ming Palace in Nanjing. Ming Palace was destroyed in the war at the end of the Qing Dynasty. Now what remain are only some carved stones, building foundation, column base, etc. 

The Drum Tower lying on the western side of the People's Square in Nanjing City was first built in 1382 in the Ming Dynasty. Afterward, it was destroyed and rebuilt for several times. The existing structure was built at the end of the Qing Dynasty. The elevated stand of brick on which Drum Tower is rested is the original one of the Ming Dynasty. It is 8.9 meters high, 44.4 meters from east to west, and 22.6 meters from south to north. In the middle are three cylinder-shaped passageways from east to west for people to pass through.

As a bright pearl in Qinhuai scenic area, Egret Park covers a total area of 15.3 hectares with a lake-water area of 3.8 hectares. Successively being called Xu Zhongshan Garden, Eastern Garden and Taifu Garden in history, it was a garden of Xu Da, a founding general of the Ming Dynasty. Thanks to its charming sceneries of unique rustic appeal, it has always been the place for many noted scholars to get together, writing poems and drinking wine. In the period of the Republic of China, it was formally turned into Egret Park.

Mochou Lake lies outside Shuixi Gate of Nanjing City, with a total area of 47 hectares and a circumference of 5 km. In Qing Dynasty, it was a beautiful garden that was also famed as the first attraction of Nanjing. Mochou Lake was once part of Yangtze River. Later the channels of Yangtze River and Qin Huai River changed their carrying capacity and direction, so Mochou Lake gradually became a lake.