Saint Lawrence Market lies at Jarvis and Front Streets, in the heart of what was the original ten blocks of Old Town Toronto. Long before the Eaton Centre or the banking towers in the financial district were built, long before visitors to Toronto thrilled to ascend the CN Tower or take in a show in Toronto’s theatre district, the Saint Lawrence Market complex was the heart and soul of Toronto. It what we now think of us at the south Saint Lawrence Market building, was the home of one of the first police precincts for Toronto, as well as the second city hall. As visitors walk through the main entrance on the south side of Front Street, they enter an old red brick structure. This is all that remains of the original structure, which dates back to the middle of the 1840s.
On the second floor is the Market Gallery, which features rotating displays on the archival and artistic heritage of the city. It is a museum offering free admission, and is open during regular market hours. There are usually three to four different exhibits showcased in the Market Gallery each year. One item that is permanently on display is a former mayor’s chair, dating back to the end of the nineteenth century. It was here, in what is now the Market Gallery, that various mayors of Toronto have sat and presided over the city council. This space served as the mayor’s office from 1845 to 1899. Thus it was the second city hall for Toronto, operating until construction on a new city hall was completed in 1899. The “new city hall”, on Queen Street, between Yonge and Bay Streets, is the one that modern day Torontonians think of as “old city hall”. When the new city hall opened on Queen Street, the Market Gallery area was shut down, and lay unused for over seven decades.
