has grown and prospered in an exceptional degree during the past half-century, owing to the development of the trawling industry, its educational facilities, and the attractions it offers to residents. In 1883, 900 acres were added to the municipal area, which was further extended in 1891 from 2681 to 6602 acres, incorporating in the city the burghs of Old Aberdeen and Woodside, and the district of Torry on the other side of the Dee. A large number of handsome streets have been laid out, and 200 to 400 buildings have been erected annually at a total estimated cost of £150,000 to £350,000, An esplanade is being laid out along the sea-beach, and a boulevard constructed round the city. Union Terrace Gardens are now public, and Duthie Park (44 acres), lying on the north bank of the Dee, has been opened; it is adorned with a granite statue of Hygeia in honour of the donor. The latest addition to the parks is Stewart Park (1312 acres), By the introduction of a freer treatment of granite the architecture of the city generally has been much improved in recent years. Marischal College has been rendered a still more striking feature of Aberdeen. Under an extension scheme to which the Treasury contributed £40,000, the Town Council £23,350, and one donor between £20,000 and £30,000, a splendid graduation hall has been built, considerable additions have been made to the class-room accommodation, and the edifice has been crowned by a lofty and imposing tower, while the front, long concealed by mean houses, has been largely opened up. King’s College also has been extended, and the chapel reconstructed internally and decorated. A botanic garden was presented to the university in 1899, and the opening of the Mitchell Hall coincided with the celebration of the quatercentenary of the university in 1895. Two viaducts carrying streets have been constructed, and Victoria Bridge over the Dee opened. The East church, bummed down in 1874, has been rebuilt, and a massive granite tower erected over the aisle connecting it with the West church. This tower has been furnished with a Jubilee peal of 36 bells. The New Market, destroyed by fire in 1882, was rebuilt in 1883. Perhaps the most important of the new public buildings is the Museum and Art Gallery and School of Art (Italian Renaissance in red and brown granites) opened in 1883 and 1884. Other recently erected public buildings are new harbour offices, new fish market, new School Board offices, free library, theatre, Union Club, bathing station, Salvation Army Citadel (on a prominent site), and new Parish Council Chambers, The Royal Infirmary has been: largely rebuilt since 1887 as a memorial of Queen Victoria’s Jubilee, and Trinity Hall has been extended. St Mary’s Chapel has been restored, and a dozen or more new churches have been built within the last few years. A large extension of the railway station was authorized in 1899. New statues are Queen Victoria in bronze (1893), General Gordon (1888), Sir William Wallace (colossal bronze) (1888), and Burns in bronze (1892).
Aberdeen has been represented in Parliament since 1885 by two members, who sit for the north and south divisions. The Town Council has now 34 members, including six magistrates. The two parishes of St Nicholas and Old Machar were amalgamated by the Local Government Act of 1894, and the poor law is administered by a parish council of 31 members. The Town Council began in 1899 to work the tramways; one of the routes has been equipped for overhead electric traction. Electric light has been introduced by the Corporation. Extensive improvements of the harbour accommodation have been made, including the construction of a graving dock, which has proved a failure and is being rebuilt; a bridge across the docks is being constructed. The harbour revenue rose from £32,229 in 1871 to £68,849 in 1899. At the end of 1898, 201 vessels of 96,682 tons were registered at the port, and the movements of shipping were—1888, entered 2706 vessels of 726,886 tons, cleared 2649 vessels of 703,162 tons; 1898, entered 3417 vessels of 936,409 tons, cleared 3349 vessels of 934,175 tons.
Imports were valued at £662,102 in 1888 and £927,624 in 1898; exports £135,382 in 1888 and £145,118 in 1898, The customs revenue at the port averaged £82,384 a-year in 1894-98. The granite industry continues to progress, but the most striking development has been in the fishing industry. Beam-trawling was introduced in 1882, and steam line fishing in 1889. Now there are 83 trawlers registered at the port, and 52 more make Aberdeen their headquarters. These are manned by 1140 men, and the capital invested in boats and gear is estimated at over £700,000. During 1899 there were in all 7700 arrivals. Fifty foreign smacks and luggers made landings during the year. In 1899, 886,037 tons of fish were landed which were valued at £537,422, and of that quantity 687,814 tons of £484,885 were trawl fish. A fresh impetus has been given recently to linen manufacture, Ship-building, which at one time threatened to decay, has been revived by the trawling industry; 11 vessels of 9380 tons were launched in 1889 and 28 vessels of 11,973 in 1899. The university has now 24 professors and 12 lecturers, mostly of recent institution, and its scholarships and bursaries are of £7603 annnal value, a bequest of £20,000 for this purpose having been made in 1897. Matriculated students numbered 753 in session 1898-9. Gordon’s Hospital was transformed in 1881 into Gordon’s College, a day and night secondary school, in which special attention is paid to scientific and secondary education. The grammar school for boys and a high school for girls are under the School Board, and there are several private higher-class schools. An Educational Trust constituted under the Endowments Act of 1882 possesses a capital of £155,000. Valuation in 1889-90, £550,802 ; 1899-1900, £158,802, Population in 1881, 105,003; 1891, 121,623; 1901, 153,108.
Authorities.—J, Gordon. Description of Both Towns of Aberdeen. Spalding Club, 1842.—W. Kennedy. Annals of Aberdeen. London, 1818.—Jos. Robertson. The Book of Bon-Accord. Aberdeen, 1839.—W. Robbie. Aberdeen: Its Traditions and History. Aberdeen, 1893.—C. G. Burr and A. M. Munro. Old Landmarks of Aberdeen. Aberdeen, 1886.—A. M. Munro. Memorials of the Aldermen, Provosts, and Lord Provosts of Aberdeen. Aberdeen, 1897.—P. J. Anderson. Charters, &c., illustrating the History of the Royal Burgh of Aberdeen. Aberdeen, 1890.—Idem, Selections from the Records of Marischal College. New Spalding Club, 1889, 1898–9.—J. Cooper. Chartulary of the Church of St Nicholas. New Spalding Club, 1888, 1892.—G. Cadenhead. Sketch of the Territorial History of the Burgh of Aberdeen. Aberdeen, 1876.—W. Cadenhead. Guide to the City of Aberdeen. Aberdeen, 1897.—A. Smith. History and Antiquities of New and Old Aberdeen. Aberdeen, 1882.Aberdeenshire, a maritime county of N.E. Scotland, bounded N. and E. by the German Ocean, S. by the counties of Kincardine and Perth, and W. by Banff and Inverness shires.
Area and Population.—In 1891 the Banffshire portions of the parishes of Gartly, Glass, New Machar, Old Deer, and St Fergus were transferred to Aberdeenshire, and the Aberdeenshire portion of the parish of Cabrach to Banffshire. Of parishes partly in Aberdeen and partly in Kincardine, Drumoak was placed wholly in the former and Banchory-Ternan in the latter county. According to the latest official estimate the area of the county (foreshore excluded), is 1,268,705 acres, or about 1982 square miles. The population was in 1881, 267,990; in 1891, 281,332; in 1891 on the extended area, 284,036, of whom 135,185 were males, and 148,851 females. On the old area, taking land only (1,251,451 acres, or 1955·4 square miles), the number of persons to the square mile in 1891 was 144, and the number of acres to the person 4·4. In the registration county the population increased between 1881 and 1891 by 4·83 percent. In 1901 the population was 304,420, an increase of 20,384. The following table gives particulars of the births, deaths, and marriages in 1880, 1890, and 1899:—
| Year. | Marriages. | Births. | Deaths. | Percentage of Illegitimate. |
| 1880 | 1700 | 9099 | 4472 | 14·4 |
| 1890 | 1743 | 8436 | 5205 | 12·98 |
| 1899 | 2283 | 9135 | 4884 | 11·2 |
The birth-rate, death-rate, and marriage-rate were all below the rates for Scotland. The following table gives the birth-rate, death-rate, and marriage-rate per thousand of the population for a series of years:—
| 1880. | 1881–90. | 1890. | 1891–98. | 1899. | |
| Birth-rate | 34·05 | 32·15 | 30·02 | 31·08 | 31·04 |
| Death-rate | 16·73 | 16·77 | 18·52 | 16·72 | 16·59 |
| Marriage-rate | 6·36 | 6·23 | 6·20 | 7·25 | 7·75 |
