The Barrie Market Square building, some time in the 1870's. The first floor of the building was a sheltered place for vendors. The second floor served as the administrative premises of the Town of Barrie. This building sat on a land grant of 3.5 acres given to the farmers of Simcoe District April 24, 1846. The building was erected in 1856 and demolished in 1986 after serving various purposes.
By Dave Edwards
Market Manager
Farmers' Markets are an anchor in history- a place to buy, sell and socialize since 5,000 B.C. They have endured the rise and fall of cities and nations. They have weathered wars, collapsed economies, natural disasters. They are tough, enduring, flexible. They are a place where you can experience the pulse of life and commerce as it was for much of recorded history.
At a time when it seems someone welded the lever of change in fast- forward, markets offer a breath of fresh air. You can actually talk to the farmers who grow your vegetables and breed your meat. You can talk to the artisans who actually make the crafts. And you can discuss with neighbours and friends, the issues of the day over refreshments. Discussing the news of the day was important. Throughout history, those in power often sent servants to the markets to listen to the debate and comments. It was a quick way to determine the mood of the people.
One of the great markets of the world, the Grand Bazaar, Instanbul, Turkey. Markets like this have been going for thousands of years. Markets are essentially of two types-- ones that resemble a shopping mall with a permanent location and shopkeeper hours, and those that magically appear on a regular basis in shared use facilities- such as the Barrie Farmers' Market.
In the markets now as then, people roll out of bed in the wee hours not just to buy and sell eggs, bread, fruit, jam or sausage, but to immerse themselves in stories, news, music, sounds. There always were new varieties of produce and meats waiting to be tried. And crafts to make the chores a little lighter, or the home a little brighter.
There are currently over 110 farmers' markets in Ontario. The number is building rapidly as more discover, if for only a few hours each week, the unique experience and atmosphere of less complicated times.
Art concept of trading at an ancient Babylonian market. Right, a vendor sells semi-precious stones and jewelry from a saddle bag, while a customer seems more interested in buying the horse. Left, rear, a vendor of pots. Also left, a vendor of liquid refreshment. With arms folded, a customer bides his time to bid on the horse.
The marketplace has always been at the centre of early cultures and civilizations. The Barrie Farmers' Market continues that tradition in a customer friendly atmosphere. But unlike some of the markets of London, England (some dating back to medieval times), the trading session does not require customers to arrive at 4:00 in the morning and shop by flashlight. Many would argue that this is part of the charm of the London markets. By comparison, the Barrie market has genteel hours with the trading session starting at 8:00 in the morning and running to 12:30 in the afternoon.
The Barrie market is one of few that operate in Ontario year round, every Saturday. It is held inside the Rotunda of Barrie City Hall from November to April. It then moves outside for the regular growing season lasting from May to Halloween. Colourful tents and canopies along Collier and Mulcaster Streets on the City Hall grounds make it easy to find and signal the availability in quantity of local produce, meats, baked goods and crafts.
| An early morning look at the Barrie Farmers' Market. The walkway is starting to fill with customers. Vendors set up on either side of the covered walkway, indicated by the colorful tents and tarpaulins. Vendors also set up on Mulcaster Street, the Rotunda when available, and in the Courtyard around a reflecting pool. Market set-up starts at 6:00 a.m. to erect signs, displays and banners to put a farm flavour on the local seat of government. Trading starts at 8:00, but many vendors set up their stalls shortly after 6:00 a.m. Market sessions end at 12:30 p.m., and by 1:30 p.m., all reminders of the market are gone. The location once again becomes City Hall. |
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In the market grand tradition, the Barrie Farmers' Market also offers entertainment on a frequent basis, usually singers and instrumentalists. Singers, guitarists, violinists, entire bands and more are often available on a surprise basis.
In recognition of common community roots and in a spirit of neighbourliness, the Barrie market offers spaces for local charities and community groups on a board-approved basis. Groups such as Food For Thought, UNICEF, Canadian Cancer Society, C.N.I.B, Hospice Simcoe, Girl Guides and many more can be seen throughout the market trading year.
Unlike some markets, every vendor at the Barrie market is juried. Potential vendors must pass a rigorous approvals process and win the nod from the Board of Directors before they can set up. This quality control feature helps ensure that only applicants who meet the mark will be permitted to become vendors.
Throughout the growing season, when there is produce left at session end, the Barrie Farmer's Market often has a collection of surplus from vendors on a voluntary basis. The produce, meats and baked goods are then donated to local charitable groups.
Inspecting the Roots
Many customers ask about the history of the Barrie Farmer's Market because it seems to be a long standing Barrie tradition. It is. It predates Canada.
A land grant of three and one half acres in what is now downtown Barrie, gave birth to the Barrie Farmers' Market. The grant is dated April 24, 1846- before there was a Canada. The land parcel was a parallelogram, and encompassed the site of the current Barrie City Hall, the parking lot and building on the far side of Mulcaster, the old library and armoury on Mulcaster. The prime condition of the grant was that the land was awarded forever (yes- the word forever appears in the grant) for a market and building to serve the farmers of Simcoe District (now Simcoe County).
To see the actual grant and other historical documents, click here.
A building was erected at Mulcaster and Collier in 1856. Mulcaster split in two then and ran around either side of the "Open Square" which contained the farm market building. The location of the old market building is now marked with a steel outline bridging Mulcaster at Collier. The second floor of the market building was used to run the affairs of the town of Barrie, while the Market traded on the first floor and in the parking lot.
This steel outline bridging Mulcaster street is an enduring reminder of the location of the ancestral home of the Barrie Farmers' Market at Market Square.
Vendors hitched up the horses long before sun-up on Market day. They arrived with wagons heaped high with produce, meats, baked goods and crafts. Livestock was actively traded on the hoof in the parking lot. Many vendors preferred to sell right off their wagons in the parking lot while crafts, baked goods and cider were sold inside. At the end of the trading session, some vendors gathered regularly at the Queen's Hotel for refreshment and camaraderie before the long ride home.
Market Square was severely damaged by fire in 1875, was rebuilt in 1877 with a new wing, and finally demolished in 1986.
Barrie was barely a town when the land grant was issued. There were only 830 people in all of what is now Simcoe County in 1824. By the early 1900's, Barrie was firmly established with 6,000 residents. This was the pattern of growth that led to the next major event in the history of the Barrie Farmers' Market.
Came the late 1940's, Barrie was becoming a bustling town. It would not be long before it would turn into a city. Running the affairs of the town out of the second floor of the old Market building on Mulcaster was fast becoming unworkable. A new center of operations was needed to take Barrie into the decades ahead.
Although many of the details remain hidden to this day, the land grant, with the provision that it be used only for a Farmers' Market and market building, was turned over to the town of Barrie. The transfer was accomplished through Bill 27, "An Act Respecting the Town Of Barrie" presented in the Ontario Legislature by Mr. Johnson of Simcoe Centre. It received third and final reading March 25, 1952 and became law that remains to this day.
The parallelogram of land was turned over to the town of Barrie on a condition specified on page two of the Bill. The condition was that the town of Barrie take on an obligation to provide a space and more for a continuing Farmers' Market. The text reads, verbatim, Bill 27, page two, subsection "Liability to provide alternate market"...
"The Corporation of the Town of Barrie shall provide for the purpose of a market, in a suitable location within the Corporation limits or the adjoining municipalities, an area not less than one acre of land and a market house with a floor area of not less than 2,000 square feet, in lieu of the land and market building in use for the said purpose on the 1st day of January, 1952, and located on the said Market Square, if and when the said area of land and market house become unsatisfactory or inadequate for the said purpose."
Barrie continued to grow, and on January 1, 1959 became a city. The Market Square building came down in 1986- one year after the current City Hall complex was opened. With the loss of its ancestral home, the number of vendors plummeted when it relocated to the much smaller armoury on Mulcaster. The future seemed bleak, until under the terms of Bill 27, the Market relocated to the current City Hall location and began to prosper once more.
Throughout the 158 years since the land grant came into effect, the Barrie market did not operate continuously. World War One, World War Two, the Korean War and other conflicts shut down the market for various periods- much to the displeasure of customers- as vendors and sons of vendors answered the call. The Market always bounced back.
The Barrie Farmers' Market currently offers about 50 vendors throughout summer and fall during the outdoor sessions, and about 30 during the indoor sessions running November to April. And when the light is just right early in the mists of sunrise, it's almost possible to see the shapes of wagons and horses.