New Aberdeen, situated on a rising ground near the estuary of the Dee, is a large and elegant town. It has many fine streets, whose sides are lined with handsome houses, generally four floors in height, built of granite from the neighbouring quarries. In this town the notice of strangers is attracted by several public buildings, which do the highest honour to the taste and spirit of the inhabitants. On the north side of the market-place, a large oblong square in the cen tre of the city, is the town-house, adorned with an ele gant spire; and adjoining to it is the prison, a square tower 120 feet high, which is likewise surmounted by a spire, so that the whole has a very lofty appearance. An elegant mason lodge contiguous to this, and a bank ing office of polished granite recently erected, opposite the town-house, give to this part of the town an air of peculiar splendour. The cross, which stands in the middle of Castle-street, is the most complete perhaps in the kingdom. It is an octagon stone building, orna mented with elegant bas-relievos of the kings of Scot land, from James 1. to James VI. having in the centre a Corinthian column, on the top of which there is the figure of an unicorn. But the principal building in New Aberdeen is the Marischal college, founded by George Keith, earl Marischal, in 1593. It stands in Broad-street, and contains, besides lecture rooms, a public school for conferring degrees, a common hall, decorated with some fine paintings, chiefly by Jamie son; a library, a small museum of natural history and antiquities, and an observatory, well furnished with as tronomical apparatus. Its original establishment was a principal, and two professors of philosophy ; but there have since been added, by the munificence of rich in dividuals, a third professorship of philosophy, and others, of divinity, mathematics, chemistry, medicine, and oriental languages. There are likewise many bur saries for poor students. The officers of this college are, the chancellor, the rector, the dean of faculties, the regent, who is also, ex officio, professor of Greek, and the principal. In the two colleges of Aberdeen, there were, in the year 1808, between 300 and 400 students. New Aberdeen has lately been much improved by the opening of two elegant streets, one forming an entrance from the north, and the other from the south. The latter passes over a majcstn arch of cut granite, the span of which is 130 feet, its height 29 feet, and its width within the parapets 40. In the Upper Kirkgatc is a church which lOrnierly belonged to the Francis cans, and which was founded by bishop Elphinstonc. and finished by one of his successors. Over the Dec there is a fine bridge of seven arches, said to have been first projected by Elphinstone, who left a considerable legacy for the purpose of building it and to have been completed by bishop Dunbar in the year 1530; it was repaired, or rather rebuilt, in 1724, by the magistrates of Aberdeen.
While the buildings of Aberdeen thus display the taste of its inhabitants, its numerous charitable institu tions bear a still more honourable testimony to their hu manity. Of these, we shall only mention the poor-house, appropriated to the reception of the aged poor, and of destitute children ; Lady Drum's hospital for old un married women, founded in 1668, by the lady Mary, (laughter of the earl of Buchan, and widow of sir Alex ander Irvine of Drum ; Gordon's hospital, founded in 1733, in which, from 60 to 66 boys are clothed, main tained, and educated ; the infirmary, established in 1742, in which about 900 patients arc annually relieved ; the dispensaries which have annually from 200 to 300 pa tients on the books of charity ; and the lunatic asy lum, built by subscription, about half a mile from town, in the year 1800.
Aberdeen carries on a considerable commerce, chief ly to the Baltic ; though a few of its merchants trade to the Levant, and West Indies. Its exports are knit stockings, for the manufacture of which it was long unrivalled, thread, salmon, grain and meal. The manu facture of fine thread is carried on to a considerable extent, and the manufacture or brown linen, osnaburgs, and canvas, has lately been introduced. It seems ra ther a reflection on the enterprising spirit of the in habitants, that not a single decked vessel has been fit tad out from their port for the prosecution of the her ring or white fisheries, for which their situation is so peculiarly favourable. Till lately, the trade of Aber deen was much obstructed by the difficulty and dan ger of approaching its harbour, occasioned by a bar of sand which was perpetually shifting its situation. A new pier, erected on the north side of the river, ac cording to a plan designed by Mr Smeaton, has ef fectually remedied that inconvenience. The pier is 1200 feet long, increasing in height and thickness as it approaches the sea, where the rounding is 60 feet diameter at the base, and the perpendicular elevation 28 feet. Near it are two batteries, mounting ten twelve pounders. The number of British ships entered at Aberdeen in 1795, amounted to 61; of foreign vessels 5 ; and of British ships cleared out, 28. Aberdeen, united with the boroughs of Aberbrothock, Brechin, Inverbervie, and Montrose, sends one member to par liament. Its civil government is vested in a provost, styled lord provost, four bailies, a dean of guild, trea surer, and town-clerk, a town council, and seven dea cons of the incorporated trades. The united popula tion of Old and New Aberdeen, amounted, in 1795, to 24,493; in 1801, to 27,508. It is situated in W. Long. 2° 8'. N. Lat. 57° 9; about 106 miles north-east from Edinburgh. (u)