2 Streets and buildings

Roughly, the extended city runs north and south. From the new bridge of Don to the "auld brig" of Dee there is tramway* (see note below) communication via King Street, Union Street, and Holburn Street--a distance of over five miles (8 km). Union Street is one of the most imposing thoroughfares in Britain. From Castle Street it runs W. S. W. for nearly a mile (1.5 km), is 70 ft (21 m) wide, and contains the principal shops and most of the modern public buildings, all of granite. Part of the street crosses the Denburn ravine (utilized for the line of the Great North of Scotland railway) by a fine granite arch of 132 ft (40 m) span, portions of the older town still fringing the gorge, fifty feet (15 m) below the level of Union Street.

Amongst the more conspicuous secular buildings in the street may be mentioned the Town and County Bank, the Music Hall, with sitting accommodation for 2000 persons, the Trinity Hall of the incorporated trades (originating in various years between 1398 and 1527, and having charitable funds for poor members, widows, and orphans), containing some portraits by George Jamesone , a noteworthy set of carved oak chairs, dating from 1574, and the shields of the crafts with quaint inscriptions; the office of the Aberdeen Free Press , one of the most influential papers in the north of Scotland; the Palace Hotel; the office of the Northern Assurance Company , and the National Bank of Scotland . In Castle Street, a continuation eastwards of Union Street, are situated the Municipal and County Buildings, one of the most splendid granite edifices in Scotland, in the Franco-Scottish Gothic style , built in 1867-1878. They are of four stories and contain the great hall with an open timber ceiling and oak-panelled walls; the Sheriff Court House; the Town Hall, with excellent portraits of Prince Albert (Prince Consort), the 4th earl of Aberdeen, the various lord provosts and other distinguished citizens. In the vestibule of the entrance corridor stands a suit of black armour believed to have been worn by Provost Sir Robert Davidson , who fought in the Battle of Harlaw, near Inverurie, in 1411. From the south-western corner a grand tower rises to a height of 210 ft (64 m), commanding a fine view of the city and surrounding country. Adjoining the municipal buildings is the North of Scotland Bank, of Greek design, with a portico of Corinthian columns, the capitals of which are exquisitely carved. On the opposite side of the street is the fine building of the Union Bank. At the upper end of Castle Street stands the Salvation Army Citadel, an effective castellated mansion, the most imposing " barracks" possessed anywhere by this organization. In front of it is the Market Cross, a beautiful, open-arched, hexagonal structure, 21 ft (6.4 m) in diameter and 18 ft (5.5 m) high. The original was designed in 1682 by John Montgomery , a native architect, but in 1842 it was removed hither from its old site and rebuilt in a better style. On the entablature surmounting the Ionic columns are panels containing medallions of Scots sovereigns from James I to James VII. From the centre rises a shaft, 12.5 ft (3.8 m) high, with a Corinthian capital on which is the royal unicorn rampant. On an eminence east of Castle Street are the military barracks. In Market Street are the Mechanics' Institution, founded in 1824, with a good library; the Post and Telegraph offices; and the market, where provisions of all kinds and general wares are sold. The Fish Market, on the Albert Basin, is a busy scene in the early morning. The art gallery and museum at Schoolhill, built in the Italian Renaissance style of red and brown granite, contains an excellent collection of pictures, the Macdonald Hall of portraits of contemporary artists by themselves being of altogether exceptional interest and unique of its kind in Great Britain. The public library, magnificently housed, contains more than 60,000 volumes. The theatre in Guild Street is the chief seat of dramatic, as the Palace Theatre in Bridge Place is of variety entertainment. The new buildings of Marischal College fronting Broad Street, opened by King Edward VII in 1906, form one of the most splendid examples of modern architecture in Great Britain; the architect, Alexander Marshall Mackenzie , a native of Aberdeen, having adapted his material, white granite, to the design of a noble building with the originality of genius.

• There is no tramway in Aberdeen. The last tram went through the streets on 3 May 1958. All trams except one were scrapped. The last tram is on display in the Transport Museum in Alford, Aberdeenshire.

3 Churches

Like most Scottish towns, Aberdeen is well equipped with churches, most of them of good design, but few of special interest. The East and West churches of St Nicholas, their kirkyard separated from Union Street by an Ionic facade, 147.5 ft (45 m) long, built in 1830, form one continuous building, 220 ft (67 m) in length, including the Drum Aisle (the ancient burial-place of the Irvines of Drum) and the Collison Aisle, which divide them and which formed the transept of the 12th-century church of St Nicholas. The West Church was built in 1775, in the Italian style, the East originally in 1834 in the Gothic. In 1874 a fire destroyed the East Church and the old central tower with its fine peal of nine bells, one of which, Laurence or "Lowrie", was 4 ft (1.2 m) in diameter at the mouth, 3.5 ft (1 m) high and very thick. The church was rebuilt and a massive granite tower erected over the intervening aisles at the cost of the municipality, a new peal of 36 bells, cast in the Netherlands, being installed to commemorate the Victorian jubilee of 1887. The Roman Catholic Cathedral in Huntly Street, a Gothic building, was erected in 1859. The episcopal see of Aberdeen was first founded at Mortlach in Banffshire by Malcolm II in 1004 to celebrate his victory there over the Danes, but in 1137 David I transferred the bishopric to Old Aberdeen, and twenty years later the cathedral of St Machar, situated a few hundred metres from the Don, was begun. Save during the episcopate of William Elphinstone ( 1484- 1511), the building progressed slowly. Gavin Dunbar, who followed him in 1518, was enabled to complete the structure by adding the two western spires and the southern transept. The church suffered severely at the Reformation, but is still used as the parish church. It now consists of the

nave and side aisles. It is chiefly built of outlayer granite, and, though the plainest cathedral in Scotland, its stately simplicity and severe symmetry lend it unique distinction. On the flat panelled ceiling of the nave are the heraldic

shields of the princes, noblemen and bishops who shared in its erection, and the great west window contains modern painted glass of excellent colour and design. The cemeteries are St Peter's in Old Aberdeen, Trinity near the links, Nellfield at the junction of Great Western and Holburn Roads, and Allenvale, very tastefully laid out, adjoining Duthie Park.

4 Education

The first of Aberdeen's two universities, the University of Aberdeen, was founded in 1495 by William Elphinstone, Bishop of Aberdeen and Chancellor of Scotland, The University of Aberdeen is Scotland's third oldest, and the UK's fifth oldest University.

Aberdeen is also home to The Robert Gordon University, which has a long history associated with it, stretching back to 1750 when Robert Gordon willed his entire estate to establish a residential school known as the Robert Gordon's Hospital.

Aberdeen College has several campuses in Aberdeen and offers a wide variety of part-time and full-time courses leading to several different qualifications.

The United Free Church Divinity Hall in Alford Place, in the Tudor Gothic style, dates from 1850. The Grammar School, founded in 1263, was removed in

1861- 1863 from its old quarters in Schoolhill to a large new building, in the Scots Baronial style, off Skene Street. Robert Gordon's College in Schoolhill was founded in 1729 by the merchant Robert Gordon, grandson of Robert Gordon of Straloch the map maker, and further endowed in 1816 by Alexander Simpson of Collyhill. Originally devoted (as Gordon's Hospital) to the instruction and maintenance of the sons of poor burgesses of guild and trade in the city, it was reorganized in 1881 as a day and night school for secondary and technical education, and has since been unusually successful. Besides two High School's for Girls and numerous board schools, there are many private schools in Aberdeen. Under the Endowments Act 1882 an educational trust was constituted which possesses a capital of £155,000. At Blairs, in Kincardineshire, five miles (8 km) S.W. of Aberdeen, is the abandonned St Mary's Roman Catholic College, for the training of young men intended for the priesthood, with plans to turn it into a hotel.

5 Charities

The Royal Infirmary, in Woolmanhill, established in 1740, rebuilt in the Grecian style in 1833-1840, and largely extended after 1887 as a memorial of Queen Victoria's jubilee; the Royal Asylum, opened in 1800; the Female Orphan Asylum, in Albyn Place, founded in 1840; the Blind Asylum, in Huntly Street, established in 1843; the Royal Hospital for Sick Children; the Maternity Hospital, founded in 1823; the City Hospital for Infectious Diseases; the Deaf and Dumb Institution; Mitchell's Hospital in Old Aberdeen; the East and West Poorhouses, with lunatic wards; and hospitals devoted to specialized diseases, are amongst the most notable of the charitable institutions. There are, besides, industrial schools for boys and girls and for Roman Catholic children, a Female School of Industry, the Seabank Rescue Home, Nazareth House and Orphanage, St Martha's Home for Girls, St Margaret's Convalescent Home and Sisterhood, House of Bethany, the Convent of the Sacred Heart, and the Educational Trust School.

6 Parks and open spaces

Duthie Park, of 50 acres (0.2 km²), the gift of Miss Elizabeth Crombie Duthie of Ruthrieston, occupies an excellent site on the north bank of the Dee. Victoria Park 13 acres (53,000 m²) and its extension Westburn Park of 13 acres (53,000 m²) are situated in the north-western area; farther north lies Stewart Park of 11 acres (45,000 m²), called after Sir D. Stewart, Lord Provost in 1893. The capacious links bordering the sea between the mouths of the two rivers are largely resorted to for open-air recreation; there is here a rifle range where a " wapinschaw ", or shooting tournament, is held annually. Part is laid out as an 18 hole golf course; a section is reserved for cricket and football; a portion has been railed off for a racecourse, and a bathing-station has been erected. Union Terrace Gardens are a popular rendezvous in the heart of the city.

7 Statues

In Union Terrace Gardens stands a colossal statue in bronze of Sir William Wallace, by W. G. Stevenson, R.S.A. ( 1888). In the same gardens are a bronze statue of Robert Burns and Baron Charles Marochetti 's seated figure of Prince Albert. In front of Gordon's College is the bronze statue, by T. S. Burnett, A.R.S.A., of General Gordon ( 1888). At the east end of Union Street is the bronze statue of Queen Victoria, erected in 1893 by the royal tradesmen of the city. Near the Cross stands the granite statue of the 5th Duke of Gordon (d.

1836). Here may also be mentioned the obelisk of Peterhead granite, 70 ft (21 m) high, erected in the square of Marischal College to the memory of Sir James M`Grigor ( 1778- 1851), the military surgeon and director-general of the Army Medical Department, who was thrice elected lord rector of the College.

8 Bridges

The Dee is crossed by a number of bridges:

• Old Dee bridge
• Wellington suspension bridge
• Railway bridge
• Victoria Bridge, opposite Market Street.

Later bridges include the King George V bridge and Queen Elizabeth bridge. The first, till 1832 the only access to the city from the south, consists of seven semicircular ribbed arches, is about 30 ft (10 m) high, and was built early in the 16th century by Bishops Elphinstone and Dunbar. It was nearly all rebuilt in 1718- 1723, and in 1842 was widened from 14.5 to 26 ft (4.4 to 8 m). The bridge of Don has five granite arches, each 75 ft (23 m) in span, and was built in 1827- 1832. A little to the west is the Auld Brig o' Balgownie, a picturesque single arch spanning the deep black stream, said to have been built by King Robert I, and celebrated by George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron in the tenth canto of " Don Juan".

9 Harbour

A defective harbour, with a shallow sand and gravel bar at its entrance, long retarded the trade of Aberdeen, but under various acts since 1773 it was greatly deepened. The north pier, built partly by John Smeaton in 1775-1781, and partly by Thomas Telford in 1810-1815, extends nearly 3,000 ft (1 km) into the North Sea. It increases the depth of water on the bar from a few feet (some metres) to 24 ft (7 m) at spring tides and to 18 ft (5 m) at neap. A wet dock, of 29 acres (117,000 m²), and with 6000 ft (2 km) of quay, was completed in 1848 and called Victoria Dock in honour of the queen's visit to the city in that year. Adjoining it is the Upper Dock. By the Harbour Act of 1868 , the Dee near the harbour was diverted from the south at a cost of £80,000, and 90 acres (360,000 m²) of new ground, in addition to 25 acres (100,000 m²) formerly made up, were provided on the north side of the river for the Albert Basin (with a graving dock), quays and warehouses. A breakwater of concrete, 1050 ft (300 m) long, was constructed on the south side of the stream as a protection against south-easterly gales. On Girdleness, the southern point of the bay, a lighthouse was built in 1833. Near the harbour mouth are three batteries mounting nineteen guns. It is worth noting that Aberdeen Harbour was the first publicly limited company in the United Kingdom.

10 Industry

Owing to the variety and importance of its chief industries Aberdeen is one of the most prosperous cities in Scotland. Very durable grey granite has been quarried near Aberdeen for more than 300 years, and blocked and dressed paving "setts", kerb and building stones, and monumental and other ornamental work of granite have long been exported from the district to all parts of the world. This, though once the predominant industry, has been surpassed by the deep-sea fisheries, which derived a great impetus from beam- trawling, introduced in 1882, and steam line fishing in 1889, and threatened to rival if not to eclipse those of Grimsby. Fish trains were then dispatched to London daily. Most of the leading pre-1970s industries date from the 18th century, amongst them woollens (1703), linen (1749), and cotton (1779). These gave employment to several thousands of operatives. The paper-making industry is one of the most famous and oldest in the city, paper having been first made in Aberdeen in 1694. Flax- spinning and jute and combmaking factories are also very flourishing, and there are successful foundries and engineering works. There are large distilleries and breweries, and chemical works employing many hands. In the days of wooden ships ship-building was a flourishing industry, the town being noted for its fast clippers, many of which established records in the " tea races". The introduction of trawling revived this to some extent, and despite the distance of the city from the iron fields there is a fair yearly output of iron vessels. Of later origin are the jam, pickle, and potted meat factories, many square kilometres having been laid down in strawberries and other fruits within a few kilometres of the city. With the discovery of significant oil deposits in the North Sea during the late twentieth century, Aberdeen became the centre of Europe's petroleum industry, with the port serving oil rigs off-shore. The number of jobs created by the energy industry in and around Aberdeen has been estimated at half a million. In the mid 1980s, the city was dealt a heavy blow by the loss-of-life suffered during an explosion and fire aboard one such rig, the Piper Alpha.

11 History

Aberdeen was an important place as far back as the 12th century. William the Lion had a residence in the city, to which he gave a charter in 1179 confirming the corporate rights granted by David I. The city received other royal charters later. It was burned by King Edward III of England in 1336, but it was soon rebuilt and extended, and called New Aberdeen. The burgh records are the oldest in Scotland. They begin in 1398 and with one brief break are complete to the present day. For many centuries the city was subject to attacks by the neighbouring barons, and was strongly fortified, but the gates were all removed by 1770. In 1497 a blockhouse was built at the harbour mouth as a protection against the English. During the struggles between the Royalists and Covenanters the city was impartially plundered by both sides. In 1715 the Earl Marischal proclaimed the Old Pretender at Aberdeen, and in 1745 the Duke of Cumberland resided for a short time in the city before attacking the Young Pretender. The motto on the city arms is "Bon Accord", which formed the watchword of the Aberdonians while aiding Robert Bruce in his battles with the English.

12 Population

In 1396 the population was about 3000. By 1801 it had become 26,992; in 1841 it was 63,262; ( 1891) 121,623; ( 1901) 153,503; in 2001 it was 197,328.

13 Football club

Aberdeen Football Club was founded in 1903. Its major success was winning the European Cup Winners Cup in 1983, under now Manchester United F.C. manager Alex Ferguson.

14 Authorities

The charters of the burgh; extracts from the council register down to 1625, and selections from the letters. guildry and treasurer's accounts, forming 3 vols. of the Spalding Club; Cosmo Innes, Registrum Episcopatus Aberdonensis, Spalding Club; Walter Thore, The History of Aberdeen ( 1811); Robert Wilson, Historical Account and Delineation of Aberdeen ( 1822); William Kennedy, The Annals of Aberdeen ( 1818); Orem, Descripjion of the Chanonry, Cathedral and King's College of Old Aberdeen, 1724-1725 ( 1830); Sir Andrew Leith Hay of Rannes, The Castellated Architecture of Aberdeen; Giles, Specimens of old Castellated Houses of Aberdeen ( 1838); James Bryce, Lives of Eminent Men of Aberdeen ( 1841); J. Gordon, Description of Both Towns of Aberdeen (Spalding Club, 1842); Joseph Robertson, The Book of Bon-Accord (Aberdeen, 1839); W. Robbie, Aberdeen: its Traditions and History (Aberdeen,

1893); C. G. Burr and A. M. Munro, Old Landmarks of Aberdeen (Aberdeen, 1886); A. M. Munro, Memorials of the Aldermen, Provosts and Lord Provosts of Aberdeen (Aberdeen, 1897); P. J. Anderson, Charters, &c., illustrating the History of Records of Marischal College (New Spalding 1890); Selections from the Records of Marischal College (New Spalding Club, 1889, 1898..1899); J. Cooper, Chartulary of the Church of St Nicholas (New Spalding Club, 1888, 1892); G. Cadenhead, Sketch of the Territorial History of the Burgh of Aberdeen (Aberdeen, 1876); W. Cadenhead, Guide to

the City of Aberdeen (Aberdeen, 1897); A. Smith, History and Antiquities of New and Old Aberdeen (Aberdeen, 1882).

15 External links

• Aberdeen City Council
• Aberdeen Dialect

This article incorporates text from the public domain 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica. 1911 Britannica

Cities in Scotland Coastal cities

<Hide>