Toronto, Canada's St. Lawrence Market, located west of Jarvis Street, between King Street East and the Esplanade, is owned by the City of Toronto. The City operates several programs at the Complex: the Farmers' Market, Market Carts, Occasional Use, Special Events, Rental Facilities and Permanent Tenancies. For information on any of these, call (416) 392-7219 or e-mail market@stlawrencemarket.com



History of the Market

In 1803, Governor Peter Hunter issued a proclamation that the land bounded by Front, Jarvis, King and Church streets be officially designated the "Market Block." Since that time, the Market Block, expanded to include the land created by landfill south of Front Street, has been a centre of government, commerce and social activity, first for the city of York, and then for Toronto.

For the story of the development of this historic area and pictures of how it looked when, go to the History of the Market.



Current Uses of Market Buildings

The three buildings that comprise the St. Lawrence Market Complex today house four main functions on a regular basis, as well as occasional use activities, all briefly described below. For more detailed information, the links in the text or on the directory board to the left will take you to the relevant pages.

The main and lower levels of the South Market contain over 50 specialty vendors, known for the variety and freshness of their fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, grains, baked goods and dairy products, as well as for the uniqueness of the non-food items for sale.

The second floor of the South Market is home to the Market Gallery, the official exhibition centre for the City of Toronto Archives.

The North Market is primarily known for its Saturday Farmers' Market, a tradition begun on this site in 1803 and continuing today, as the producers of Southern Ontario bring their seasonal produce to market in the city.

On Sundays, over 80 antique dealers fill the North Market and the surrounding plaza, displaying their wares from dawn to 5 p.m. Admission is free.

Every other day, the 10,000 square feet of modern showroom space in the North Market is available to rent for promotional functions, flea markets, displays, large social gatherings, meetings and exhibitions. Rental information is available here.

St. Lawrence Hall, built in 1850, today houses retail businesses on the ground floor and City offices on the second floor. The third floor, restored in 1967 as the City of Toronto's Centennial project contains the Great Hall which, with the ancillary rooms, is available for rent.




Hours of Operation

Farmers' Market	Saturday	from 5 a.m.
South Market	Tuesday -- Thursday Friday Saturday	8 a.m. -- 6 p.m. 8 a.m. -- 7 p.m. 5 a.m. -- 5 p.m.
North Market   Antique Market Shoppe   Sunday Antique Market   Vital Planet	Thursday -- Sunday Sunday Monday -- Saturday	for times, go here
Market Gallery	Wednesday -- Sunday	for times, go here