Central Police Station, Hong Kong

The Central Police Station occupies a site first developed in the mid-19th century after the arrival of the British. It became one of the earliest areas where colonial authorities established key institutions, forming a cluster that included the Central Police Station building, the Victoria Prison compound, and the Central Magistracy. Together, these structures shaped the administrative core of early Victoria City.

The oldest surviving element of the station is a three-story barrack block built in 1864 beside the Victoria Prison. This early block served as accommodation and workspace for officers stationed in the area. In 1905, it was expanded with a fourth story, and additional extensions followed between 1910 and 1925. These construction phases aligned with a period of rapid population growth, as large numbers of migrants arrived from mainland China and new police facilities were needed to support increased demands on law enforcement.

Throughout its history, the station underwent multiple rounds of modification, responding to social change, shifting policing methods, and the wider development of Central as Hong Kong’s commercial and civic hub. What began as a cluster of modest service buildings gradually evolved into a more substantial complex. The Central Police Station ultimately comprised seven blocks, each with its own function, and together they formed one of the territory’s most important government sites for more than a century.