Nathan Road is the main thoroughfare in
Kowloon,
Hong Kong that goes in a south-north direction from
Tsim Sha Tsui to
Mong Kok. It is lined with shops, restaurants and tourists, and was known in the post-
World War II years as the
Golden Mile, a name that is now rarely used. It starts on the southern part of Kowloon at its junction with
Salisbury Road, a few metres north of
Victoria Harbour, and ends at its intersection with
Boundary Street in the north. Portions of the
Kwun Tong and
Tsuen Wan Lines run underneath Nathan Road.
History
The first section of the road was completed in 1861. It was the very first road built in Kowloon, after
the land was ceded by the then
Qing Dynasty government to the
United Kingdom and made part of the crown colony in 1860. The road was originally named
Robinson Road, after Sir
Hercules Robinson, the 5th
Governor of Hong Kong. To avoid confusion with the
Robinson Road on
Hong Kong Island, the name was changed to
Nathan Road in 1909, after Sir
Matthew Nathan, the 13th Governor who served between 1904 and 1907.
The early Nathan Road was largely residential, with colonial-style houses with arched verandahs and covered archways. It was home to the
Whitfield Barracks, which later became
Kowloon Park.
Saint Andrew's Church, the oldest
Anglican church in Kowloon, has been located there since its completion in 1906.
The section of the road from
Gascoigne Road to
Argyle Street was originally named
Coronation Road (加冕道), in honour of the......
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