The North St. Lawrence Market was established in 1803 on the location of the original market area of York. It is Toronto’s oldest market and in 1845 the market was a combined space that included Toronto’s first City Hall, a police station, and the indoor market building.
Fire of 1849
The Great Fire of 1849 caused most of the market to be rebuilt and the South market, which remains today, housed the market, a jail, and government offices and chambers at the time. This current South Market building was built in 1902 and still houses the original City Hall inside the market which is now used as the Market Gallery.
Several Black people operated stalls such as William Hickman Sr. (who also operated 2 barber shops and grocery stores). He was a War of 1812 veteran who earned his freedom for his military service and migrated to Toronto. James Johnson owned and operated an eating house at the St Lawrence Market in the 1860s. William Henry Gilliam sold fruit, fish, and oyster vendor in the 1870s. He and his wife Rachel lived in the St. Lawrence Ward with their 8 children and operated their businesses in the Jarvis Street and Front area.