Pottinger Street is a street in

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

, Hong Kong. It is also known as the ''Stone Slabs Street'' () since the street is paved unevenly by granite stone steps. It was named in 1858 after

Henry Pottinger Lieutenant-General Sir Henry Pottinger, 1st Baronet (; 3 October 1789 – 18 March 1856) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and colonial administrator who became the first Governor of Hong Kong. Early life Henry Pottinger was born at his family est ...

, the first

Governor of Hong Kong The governor of Hong Kong was the representative of the British Crown in Hong Kong from 1843 to 1997. In this capacity, the governor was president of the Executive Council and commander-in-chief of the British Forces Overseas Hong Kon ...

, serving from 1843 to 1844. It is a Grade I historic building.

Location

The street was originally on the slope between

Queen's Road Central Queen's Road is a collection of roads along the northern coast of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong, within the limit of Victoria City. It was the first road in Hong Kong, constructed by the British between 1841 and 1843, spanning across Victoria ...

and

Hollywood Road Hollywood Road is a street in Central and Sheung Wan, on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. The street runs between Central and Sheung Wan, with Wyndham Street, Arbuthnot Road, Ladder Street, Upper Lascar Row, and Old Bailey Street in the vicini ...

. This section is entirely covered by stone slabs. It then crosses Stanley Street and Wellington Street and ends at the western end of Hollywood Road, just after it meets

Wyndham Street Wyndham Street is a one-way street in Central, Hong Kong. It is one of the earliest colonial streets, once known as Pedder Hill. Location It starts at the junction with Hollywood Road and Arbuthnot Road, near the Central Police Station, and ...

. Central District underwent several reclamation projects, and extended the street north from Queen's Road Central to

Connaught Road Central Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms (Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Delbh ...

, junctioning Des Voeux Road Central. Buildings like

Man Yee Building The original Man Yee Building (), initially built in 1957, was the first building in Hong Kong with escalators. Located between Queen's Road Central, Pottinger Street and Des Voeux Road Central in Central on the Hong Kong Island, the tower was d ...

, Wing On House, Chinachem Tower and Hong Kong Chinese Bank Building are located at this section. This is the only section that allows vehicular traffic and not being paved by stone slabs.

History

The first Roman Catholic cathedral of Hong Kong was built in 1843 at the junction of Pottinger Street and Wellington Street and was destroyed in a fire in 1859. It was rebuilt, but subsequently a different site was selected and the current Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception at

Caine Road Caine Road is a road running through Mid-Levels, Hong Kong. It connects Bonham Road to the west (at the junction with Hospital Road and Seymour Road), and Arbuthnot Road, Glenealy and Upper Albert Road to the east. The road is named after Wi ...

was completed 1888. In the 19th century, Chinese and European residents used to live separately in different neighbourhoods. The street once acts as a rough boundary between the two groups. The Chinese used to mainly live west of the street and westerners to the east. An Air-Raid Precaution Tunnel was built beneath the street in 1940-41 but was abandoned after the Second World War and was filled back in the 1980s. In the afternoon of 15 December 1941, during the

Battle of Hong Kong The Battle of Hong Kong (8–25 December 1941), also known as the Defence of Hong Kong and the Fall of Hong Kong, was one of the first battles of the Pacific War in World War II. On the same morning as the attack on Pearl Harbor, forces of the ...

, a stick Japanese bombs hit the junction of Old Bailey Street and

, the junction of Pottinger Street and

, Wellington Street and the Central Police Station. The bombing was part of a systematic bombardment of the

Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km2, . The island had a population of a ...

's north shore that was launched on that day.

References

External links

Article at gwulo.com
* Central, Hong Kong Grade I historic buildings in Hong Kong Ladder streets in Hong Kong Street markets in Hong Kong Roads on Hong Kong Island {{HongKongIsland-geo-stub

Location

History

See also

References

External links