Aberdeen Technical School [1935- ] | Gwulo: Old Hong Kong

Aberdeen Technical School [1935- ]

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Submitted by David on Thu, 2012-02-02 23:24
Current condition: 
In use
Date Place completed: 
1935-03-26

The opening date of 'March 1935' comes from the history page of the school's website.

The building is now over seventy years old, and still standing.

Tags: 
School
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Photos that show this place

1937
1945

Comments

Submitted by Adam on Fri, 2012-02-03 10:06.

Just a bit of extra info cut and pasted from something I wrote a few years ago:

Partly obscured by the Ap Lei Chau bridge since the early 1980s, the Aberdeen Industrial School for Boys (or Aberdeen Technical School as it is known today) on Wong Chuk Hang Road was opened by Hong Kong Governor Sir William Peel on March 26, 1935. Established with funds donated by the likes of Bank of East Asia founder Sir Shouson Chow, former Jardine Matheson head compradore Sir Robert Hotung and local philanthropist Fung Ping-Shan (fine sculptures of the latter two still adorn the entranceway), it was essentially a reform school for poor and wayward youths; a place where they could learn a useful trade and keep out of mischief.

 

A day after the grand opening, which was attended by dozens of prominent VIPs, The Hong Kong Daily Press reprinted the Governor’s lengthy opening speech in full. In it he praised the local private benefactors of this “notable and important addition to the social structure of Hong Kong”, who “as long ago as 1921 initiated the idea of such a school to assist young boys of the poorer classes to be trained to earn an honest livelihood.”

 

Badly damaged during the War, but re-opened and expanded soon after, the school was converted to a secondary technical school in the late 1950s. Although added to over the years, the original Art Deco-style structure – designed by local architect E.M. Hazeland, with extravagant interior terrazzo work by the Italian firm of Vannini & Co. – is still much as it was almost 75 years ago, albeit minus the clock faces that once adorned its impressive clock tower.

regards, Adam

Submitted by Admin on Fri, 2012-02-03 13:09.

Thanks Adam. It's an interesting building, and old by HK standards. Glad to read some more history about it.

Regards, David