Before there were Safeways and Sam's Clubs, public markets served as the cultural and culinary anchors of towns across the United States. Many were also fine pieces of architecture. David K. O’Neil looks at 10 of the best that have been lost to time.
"It is no secret that market halls, market sheds, and market districts were once more prevalent in American cities than they are today," says O'Neil, PPS's markets consultant. "Hundreds of markets burned down, were demolished, were removed for 'higher and better uses' (oh, how I hate that term), or were replaced with empty 'market squares'. Most towns, large and small, had at least one market that usually served as one of the most important, centrally located institutions in a growing city. Local economies were built around markets, which offered affordable opportunities to people who were looking to start a small business and vital lifelines connecting consumers and producers."
Utilizing historic postcards from his private collection, O'Neil looks at 10 of the "Greatest US Public Markets That Met the Wrecking Ball". His collection includes Savannah's Romanesque City Market (1872-1954), Cleveland's Sheriff Street Market (1891-1981), and Brooklyn's Wallabout Market (1894-1941).
Read the full story: The 10 Greatest US Public Markets That Met the Wrecking Ball
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City of Thousand Oaks
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
Northern Illinois Transit Authority (NITA)
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello