The Barr Street Market

The Barr Street Market is the oldest market in Fort Wayne. The land was donated to the city by Samuel Hanna in 1837, and within six months a small frame market house was built; merchants rented stalls for $5 per year. and the market were named for John T. Barr who, with John McCorkle, purchased the original 118 lots of the town of Fort Wayne from the U.S. Land Office in 1823. , The market was operated by the City, which employed a "Market Master” to control vendor activities, including overseeing weights and measures. The market flourished and in 1855 a new market building was erected; the outdoor stalls were placed randomly between the many trees along Barr St. between Berry St. and Washington Blvd., and the market house was used for various city governmental activities. , When a new city hall was built in 1893, the old market building was removed. A grand covered concrete market complex was built in 1910 with pavilions joining great double iron arches over Wayne St. where elaborate lion-head water troughs provided water for horses. , The appearance of shopping centers and supermarkets led to the decline of the Market and by 1958 the pavilions were destroyed. The City ended its market operation in 1966, but the Barr Street Market Association continued to rent stalls. In 1988, the Allen County-Fort Wayne Historical Society assumed ownership of the market. , The Barr Street Market in 1911. (Fort Wayne Department of Parks and Recreation Report, 1912). , Presented by the Journal-Gazette Foundation , For more information, contact: Arch an organization for historic preservation