Shanghai Street

Shanghai Street runs through Yau Ma Tei in Kowloon, parallel to Nathan Road between Jordan and Prince Edward. It began as a shoreline thoroughfare in the mid-nineteenth century, before land reclamation moved the coastline west, and was originally called Station Street after the nearby police station; it took its present name in 1909 to avoid duplication with a street of the same name in Sheung Wan. Through the twentieth century it built a reputation for goldsmiths and jewellers, particularly in the 1970s and 1980s, alongside kitchenware sellers, scale-makers and abacus vendors. A small number of long-established businesses remain, including a goldsmith trading on the street since 1892. The kitchenware trade for which the street is now best known survives in a cluster of specialist shops selling cookware, tableware, steamers, woks and catering equipment to households and to the restaurant trade. Urban renewal has reduced the number of traditional craft shops considerably against the street's mid-century peak. The nearest station is Yau Ma Tei on the Tsuen Wan line.