North Market Revenue and Competitors

Launched in 1876 and located at 59 Spruce Street at the city's public cemetery, “The North Graveyard,” the North End Market (as it was then known) was the second of four public markets in Columbus. From a fire that completely destroyed it in 1948 to being housed in a Quonset hut purchased with funds pooled by the merchants to temporary closings and threat of demolition, the North Market endured its share of hardships. Then, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Market emerged as one of the finest public markets in the country — thanks to the creation of the North Market Development Authority (NMDA). This not-for-profit group comprised of shoppers and merchants was established to "preserve and promote the traditional and cultural aspects of the historic North Market." The NMDA led the Market's recovery, including negotiating the 1992 purchase by the city of the former Advanced Thresher warehouse at 59 Spruce Street. The turn-of-the-century farm implements warehouse was ideal for redeveloping the Market; and the NMDA spearheaded a capital campaign to finance building renovations. All the hard work paid off with the re-opening of the North Market at its current location in November 1995.