Badong County began its prosperity in the Sui (581-618) and Tang (618-907) dynasties, and had its heyday in the Northern Song Dynasty. There were county sites early in the Northern and Southern Dynasties (386-589), with names like Xinling County, and then renamed Lexiang County. It was named Badong in 598 in the Sui Dynasty.

The principal part of the Badong site is the whole county area. The official site area was in the middle of the county, including the government office, temples and storehouses. There were business areas in the south of the official government site near a brook, where archeologists found an alehouse and other shop sites. The east and west part of the site were residential areas, where more than 80 houses were unearthed. Specialists say that at least 3,000 people lived in the county then.

Baiyun pavilion and Qiufeng pavilion, which were constructed by Kou Zhun according to some historical records, have all disappeared. There is still a Qiufeng pavilion at the Badong site, but it was constructed during the Ming Dynasty. Kou Zhun wrote 120 poems in the three years he lived there, accounting for half of all his work. Lu You, Su Shi, Su Sun and other poets wrote articles to commemorate Kou Zhun when they passed through, leaving many works behind