St. Lawrence Market is a major public market in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located along Front Street East and Jarvis Street in the St. Lawrence neighbourhood of downtown Toronto. The public market is made up of two sites adjacent to one another west of Jarvis Street, St. Lawrence Market North, and St. Lawrence Market South. St. Lawrence Market South is situated south of Front Street East, and is bounded by The Esplanade to the south. St. Lawrence Market North is situated north of Front Street East, and is bounded by St. Lawrence Hall to the north.
St. Lawrence Market was first established in the early 19th century, originating from a proclamation that established a designated area near King Street and New Street (later renamed Jarvis Street) for a public market in 1803. The first buildings erected for the market emerged in 1814, with the first permanent structures built in 1820. The first permanent market building was later replaced in 1831 with the first St. Lawrence Market North building. The market also served as one of four post offices in York prior to 1834.[1] The market venue was damaged after the Great Fire of Toronto of 1849, and was architecturally replaced in 1851. The market was expanded in the early 1900s, with portions of a former Toronto city hall being integrated into the ground broken facility, opened as St. Lawrence Market South in 1902, and a counterpart north wing was constructed in 1904, later architecturally replaced in 1968, and again in 2016.
The market square space was used as the city hall of Toronto for most of the 19th century, occupying a temporary space at the original market space from 1834 to 1845. Prior to being renovated for market use, the building on St. Lawrence Market South was used as the municipal city hall from 1845 to 1899, before moving into the newly built city hall building in 1899.