Aberdeen Street
Encyclopedia
Aberdeen Street is a border street dividing Sheung Wan
Sheung Wan
Sheung Wan is an area in Hong Kong, located in the north-west of Hong Kong Island, between Central and Sai Ying Pun. Administratively, it is part of the Central and Western District...
and Choong Wan (present-day Central
Central, Hong Kong
Central is the central business district of Hong Kong. It is located in Central and Western District, on the north shore of Hong Kong Island, across Victoria Harbour from Tsim Sha Tsui, the southernmost point of Kowloon Peninsula...
) on Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. It ascends from Queen's Road Central to Caine Road
Caine Road
Caine Road is a main road in Hong Kong connecting Bonham Road in the west and Arbuthnot Road and Upper Albert Road in the east ....
in the Mid-levels
Mid-levels
Mid-levels is an expensive residential area on Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It is located halfway up Victoria Peak, directly above Central...
. The street is named after George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen
George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen
George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen KG, KT, FRS, PC , styled Lord Haddo from 1791 to 1801, was a Scottish politician, successively a Tory, Conservative and Peelite, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1852 until 1855.-Early life:Born in Edinburgh on 28 January 1784, he...
, Foreign Secretary
Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly referred to as the Foreign Secretary, is a senior member of Her Majesty's Government heading the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and regarded as one of the Great Offices of State...
at the time of the cession of Hong Kong Island
Treaty of Nanking
The Treaty of Nanking was signed on 29 August 1842 to mark the end of the First Opium War between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Qing Dynasty of China...
to the United Kingdom in 1842.
History
In the early days after 1841, while Choong Wan was planned to be business centre of Victoria City and an area of Westener population, Chinese population was removed from Choong Wan to the area around Tai Ping Shan StreetTai Ping Shan Street
Tai Ping Shan Street is a street marking the early colonial history in Hong Kong. Located at the north slope of Victoria Peak in Sheung Wan, the street starts east from a ladder street at the junction with Bridges Street and end west in Po Yan Street near Tung Wah Hospital...
in Sheung Wan and Sheung Wan became the area of Chinese population.
South of Hollywood Road was the Alice Memorial Hospital and the College of Medicine where Sun Yat-sen
Sun Yat-sen
Sun Yat-sen was a Chinese doctor, revolutionary and political leader. As the foremost pioneer of Nationalist China, Sun is frequently referred to as the "Father of the Nation" , a view agreed upon by both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China...
graduated with distinction in 1892. After the college was merged into the University of Hong Kong, the hospital was also moved to Bonham Road
Bonham Road
Bonham Road is a road in Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. The road is a main road connecting Pokfulam Road in the west, near the University of Hong Kong, and Caine Road in the east, at the junction with Hospital Road and Seymour Road...
and renamed to Nethersole Hospital.
After reclamation of island north, the Aberdeen Street was extended in the north by Wing Kut Street
Wing Kut Street
Wing Kut Street is a border street of Sheung Wan and Central extended from Aberdeen Street on the Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It is also a street market.-See also:*List of streets and roads in Hong Kong...
.
Features
The following list follows a north-south order. (W) indicates the western side of the street, while (E) indicates the eastern side.- > Junction with Queen's Road Central
- This section is a ladder streetLadder streetsLadder streets are a series of streets from Central or Sheung Wan to the Mid-levels on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. The series starts from Queen's Road Central, through Hollywood Road and a few other cross streets, and ends at Caine Road at the Mid-levels...
- > intersection with Wellington StreetWellington Street, Hong KongWellington Street is a street in Central and Sheung Wan on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It is a straight road running downward and westward from Wyndham Street to Queen's Road Central. The two sides of street is a mosaic of old and new buildings. Varieties of trades can be found on the street level...
- (E) Lin Heung Tea House (莲香楼; lit. "Fragrant Lotus")
- Located at 160-164 Wellington Street, at the corner with Aberdeen Street. The restaurant opened in 1928 and changed location several times before opening at its present location. It serves dim sumDim sumDim sum refers to a style of Chinese food prepared as small bite-sized or individual portions of food traditionally served in small steamer baskets or on small plates...
for breakfast and lunch and traditional Cantonese dishesCantonese cuisineCantonese cuisine comes from Guangdong Province in southern China and is one of 8 superdivisions of Chinese cuisine. Its prominence outside China is due to the great numbers of early emigrants from Guangdong. Cantonese chefs are highly sought after throughout the country...
for dinner.
- Located at 160-164 Wellington Street, at the corner with Aberdeen Street. The restaurant opened in 1928 and changed location several times before opening at its present location. It serves dim sum
- (W)> junction with Kau U Fong (九如坊)
- (W) Lan Kwai Fong Hotel
- Located at No. 3 Kau U Fong, at the corner with Aberdeen Street. Despite the name, it is not located at Lan Kwai FongLan Kwai FongLan Kwai Fong is a small square of streets in Central, Hong Kong. The area was dedicated to hawkers before the Second World War, but underwent a renaissance in the mid 1980s. It is now a popular expatriate haunt in Hong Kong for drinking, clubbing and dining...
.
- Located at No. 3 Kau U Fong, at the corner with Aberdeen Street. Despite the name, it is not located at Lan Kwai Fong
- (E)> junction with Wa On Lane (華安里)
- (W)> junction with Gough StreetGough StreetGough Street is a street on Sheung Wan, Hong Kong just north of the Soho area of Central. It is connected to Shing Wong Street to the west and Aberdeen Street to the east....
- (E)> junction with Gage StreetGage StreetGage Street is a street in Central, Hong Kong. It is on the lower hill and between the junction with Cochrane Street and Lyndhurst Terrace, Graham Street and Aberdeen Street. The street is mainly a market.It is named after William Hall Gage.-See also:...
- (E) Original site of the school where Yang Quyun was assassinated by QingQing DynastyThe Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....
agents in 1911.- Located at No. 52 Gage Street, at the corner with Aberdeen Street. A marker, part of the Dr Sun Yat-sen Historical TrailDr Sun Yat-sen Historical TrailThe Dr Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail was set up in November 1996 by the Central and Western District Council to commemorate the 130th birthday of Sun Yat-sen. It includes 15 spots in the areas of Central and Sheung Wan in Hong Kong, related to the life of Sun Yat-sen and other revolutionaries in...
is located in Aberdeen Street. The site is also included in the Central and Western Heritage TrailCentral and Western Heritage TrailThe Central and Western Heritage Trail is a Heritage Trail in Hong Kong, that was designed by the Antiquities and Monuments Office of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department.It covers the Central and Western District of Hong Kong and consists of 3 parts:...
.
- Located at No. 52 Gage Street, at the corner with Aberdeen Street. A marker, part of the Dr Sun Yat-sen Historical Trail
- (E)> junction with Sam Ka Lane (三家里)
- > intersection with Hollywood RoadHollywood RoadHollywood Road is a street in Central and Sheung Wan, on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong.Hollywood Road is filled with trinket and antique shops of all sorts: from Chinese furniture to porcelain ware, from Buddha sculptures to Tibetan rugs, from Japanese netsukes to Coromandel screens, from Ming...
- (W) Former Hollywood Road Police Married Quarters (前荷李活道已婚警察宿舍)
- The compound occupies the block west of Aberdeen Street, between Hollywood Road and Staunton Street. It is located on the site of the former Central SchoolQueen's College, Hong KongQueen's College , initially named The Government Central School in 1862, later renamed as Victoria College in 1889, is a sixth form college for boys with a secondary school attached. It was the first public secondary school founded in Hong Kong by the British colonial government...
. The school had been established in 1862 at Gough Street and moved to the Aberdeen Street location in 1889, while being renamed Victoria College. At that time, the school was one of the largest and most expensive buildings in Hong Kong. It was renamed Queen's College in 1894. The campus was destroyed during World War II, and the school was subsequently relocated. The buildings at Aberdeen Street were demolished in 1948 and the Quarters were opened in 1951. They were completely vacated in 2000.
- The compound occupies the block west of Aberdeen Street, between Hollywood Road and Staunton Street. It is located on the site of the former Central School
- > intersection with Staunton StreetStaunton StreetStaunton Street is a street in Central and Sheung Wan, on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. Together with the upper section of Elgin Street, it is the heart of the Soho entertainment area, featuring a number of restaurants, bars and shops...
- (E) Kwong Hon Terrace Garden (光漢臺花園)
- (W) Albron Court, at the corner with Caine Road
- The current building occupies the site of a former two-storey-mansion of the same name, that had been built in the 1870s for H.N. ModyHormusjee Naorojee ModySir Hormusjee Naorojee Mody was a successful Parsi businessman in Hong Kong.-Biography:He was born in Bombay and moved to Hong Kong around 1860...
. A gatepost of the mansion remains in front of the building on Caine Road.
- The current building occupies the site of a former two-storey-mansion of the same name, that had been built in the 1870s for H.N. Mody
- (E) St. Margaret's Girls' College, at the corner with Caine Road
- > intersection with Caine RoadCaine RoadCaine Road is a main road in Hong Kong connecting Bonham Road in the west and Arbuthnot Road and Upper Albert Road in the east ....
External links
- An article about the street in Sing Pao
- Google Maps of Aberdeen Street
- Waters, Dan, "The Hungry Ghosts Festival in Aberdeen Street, Hong Kong", pp. 41-55, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch, Vol. 44 (2004)