A famous spot of the new town, Bowrington Canal was widely recognized as one of the “Eight Great Sceneries in Hong Kong” at that time. It was an artificial waterway of about 650 foot in length and 36 foot in width, constructed out of the natural stream Ngo Kan. When the tide rose, the Canal became a supreme fishing site as fishes shoaled about the place. To strengthen the dyke, the government planted banyan trees on both sides of the waterway, which not only bound soil together but also added charm to the canal. With its poetic “goose stream under banyans”, Bowrington Canal was singled out as the “Eight Great Sceneries in Hong Kong” early in the 1880s, thus becoming the most prepossessing place in Hong Kong.

On the two banks of Bowrington Canal were built Canal Road East and Canal Road West. There were altogether three cross-river wooden bridges at that time, found respectively at Hennessey Road, Lockhart Road and Gloucester Road. The one at Hennessey Road was later extended into a 100-foot wide concrete bridge that could accommodate a two-lane tram track. It was, and still is, what the elderlies today call Ngo Keng Kiu (Gooseneck Bridge).

After the Wan Chai reclamation project in the west was completed in the 1920s, the government decided to cover up Bowrington Canal and to fully integrate Hennessey Road and Ngo Keng Kiu. Accordingly, the banyan trees along the banks were all chopped off, and the new-built coverage, then an open land area, was turned into Ngo Keng Market. In the 1960s, Ngo Keng Market was moved nearby to make room for road building, and the original site became today’s Canal Road Flyover.