Former Kowloon Magistracy
Courthouse in Kowloon, Hong Kong
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The former Kowloon Magistracy is a historic building and former Magistrate's and District Court in Hong Kong, located at No. 38 Gascoigne Road, Yau Ma Tei, Kowloon.
| Old South Kowloon District Court Building | |
|---|---|
前南九龍裁判法院 | |
Facade of the former Kowloon Magistracy in Gascoigne Road. | |
 | |
General information | |
| Type | Courthouse |
| Location | Yau Ma Tei, Kowloon, 38 Gascoigne Road, Hong Kong |
Completed | 1933 |
| Design and construction | |
| Designations | |
| Designated | 18 December 2009 |
| Reference no. | 128 |
| Former Kowloon Magistracy | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 前南九龍裁判法院 | ||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 前南九龙裁判法院 | ||||||||||||
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History
Constructed under the direction of Director of Public Works Richard McNeil Henderson in 1933,[1] the building housed a court handling minor criminal cases at magistrate's level. During the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, it served as the Kowloon headquarters of the Kempeitai.[2] It later served as the Kowloon District Court which was renamed in 1957 the South Kowloon District Court. After the opening of the North Kowloon Magistracy in 1960, some cases were diverted there. The South Kowloon District Court remained in use as a district court until 1986 when it became the Judiciary Central File Repository. It has served as the Lands Tribunal (土地審裁處) since 1997 and accommodates five courts.[3]
The South Kowloon Magistracy moved to a building next door (36 Gascoigne Road) where it operated until final closure in 2000.[4]
Conservation
The former Kowloon Magistracy was listed as a Grade II historic building[5] in 1992[3] and upgraded to Grade I in 2009.[6]
