Human settlement in Harbin area dates from at least 2200 BC during the late Stone Age. Wanyan Aguda, the founder and first emperor of Jin dynasty from 1115 to 1123, was born in the Jurchen Wanyan tribes who resided near the Ashi River in this region.[15] In 1115 CE, Aguda established Jin's capital Shangjing (Upper Capital) Huining Fu in today's Acheng District of Harbin.[16] After Aguda's death, the new emperor Wanyan Sheng ordered to build a new city on uniform plan. The planning and construction emulated major Chinese cities, in particular Bianjing (Kaifeng), although the Jin capital was smaller than its Northern Song prototype.[17] Huining Fu served as the first superior capital of the empire until the capital was moved to Yanjing (now Beijing) in 1153 by Wanyan Liang (the fourth emperor of Jin Dynasty).[18] Liang even went so far as to destroy all palaces in his former capital in 1157.[18] Wanyan Liang's successor Wanyan Yong (Emperor Shizong) restored the city and established it as a secondary capital in 1173.[19] Ruins of the Shangjing Huining Fu were discovered and excavated at about 2 km from present-day Acheng's central urban area.[16][20] The site of the old Jin capital ruins is a national historic reserve, and includes the Jin Dynasty History Museum. The museum is open to public and renovated in the late 2005.[20] Mounted statues of Aguda and his chief commander Wanyan Zonghan (also Nianhan) have been erected on the grounds of the museum.[21] Many of the artifacts found there are on display in nearby Harbin.
After the Mongol conquest of the Jin Empire, Huining Fu was abandoned. Building materials of Huining Fu's ruin was later exploited by the Manchus in the 1600s to build their new stronghold in Alchuka. The region of Harbin remained largely rural until the 1800s, with only over ten villages and about 30,000 people in today's urban districts of the city by the end of the 19th century.[22]