Gough Street seems a world away now. Queen’s College has come a long way since then. The British colonial government founded Queen’s College in 1862. It was the first public secondary school. Originally named The Government Central School. it aimed to educate brilliant boys for Hong Kong and China. The goal was to strengthen the country’s youth.
Queen’s College first stood on Gough Street in Sheung Wan. Space became an issue as the school grew. In 1884 a new site between Aberdeen Street and Hollywood Road was selected. After the foundation stone was laid it was renamed Victoria College. The former Gough Street site became home to the Central School for Girls. It later became Belilios Public School.
In 1894 the school was officially renamed Queen’s College. The curriculum included both Chinese and Western subjects. Arithmetic Geography and History were taught. The school also included Hygiene and Grammar. Queen’s College encouraged extracurricular activities. By the 1920s the school was well known. Its sports and academic achievements were widely recognized in Hong Kong and South China. The school temporarily closed in 1941. This was due to the Japanese invasion. The campus suffered severe damage during the war. It was bombed and set on fire. “The Old Lady of Aberdeen Street” was reduced to rubble. Only a marble bust of headmaster Dr. G.H. Bateson Wright was recovered.
Queen’s College reopened in 1946 after the British reoccupation. It shared a campus with Clementi Middle School on Kennedy Road. In 1950 a new campus was built in Causeway Bay. Sir Alexander Grantham laid the foundation stone. He later opened the building on September 22 of the same year. This two-story building has served Queen’s College students for over 70 years.
Until 1951 Class 4 was the lowest class at Queen’s College. That is the equivalent of today’s Form 3. Two additional classes were added in September 1951. Class 6 became the lowest class. That is Form 1 today. These changes led to an uneven distribution of divisions for a time. There were ten divisions of Class 4 in 1950. Four of these divisions were transferred to King’s College in 1951. From 1955 arts students were transferred to King’s College. Later they went to Belilios Public School for their Advanced Level year. In 1962 an extra Upper Sixth Form was created. This allowed Queen’s College boys to study at Queen’s College instead of Belilios. Meanwhile some Belilios girls came to Queen’s College to study science. Since then Queen’s College has remained a boys’ school. It is a full-time Anglo-Chinese secondary school.
Outstanding results have continued at Queen’s College. This has been the case in both academics and extracurricular activities. The school is a mix of Western-style education and Chinese culture. Queen’s College has a glorious history. It spans almost 160 years. Its primary purpose remains the same. Queen’s College is educating brilliant boys. It strengthens Hong Kong and China.
Notably Queen’s College has produced many high achievers. There have been perfect scorers in public examinations. The Yellow Dragon is the school magazine. It was first published in June 1899. It is the world’s oldest existing Anglo-Chinese school magazine.