Program Directory

 
Remarkable Ohio - Cleveland's West Side Market
 
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Since opening in 1912, the West Side Market, Cleveland's oldest continuously operating, municipally-owned market, has been an anchor to the historic Ohio City neighborhood.

Built to replace the Pearl Street Market and the Central Market. All three served Cleveland's growing population in the early 20th century, but only the West Side Market remains.

Designed by architects W. Dominick Benes and Benjamin Hubbell, the 30,000 square foot space has a dramatic vaulted Guastavino tile ceiling and a signature clock tower that is 137 feet high. The Seth Thomas Clock Company manufactured the clock.

Construction of the West Side Market began in 1908 and it opened to the public on November 2, 1912. The total construction cost of the Market was $734,890. Originally, there were 109 stands inside selling meats, dairy products, bread, groceries, and ethnic specialty foods, Produce was sold from curbside stands until the outdoor produce aisles were erected a few years later.

In 1973, the Market was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2008, the American Planning Association designated the Market as one of "10 Great Public Places in America."

The Market continues to offer a culturally diverse shopping experience, as it has for generations.
December 6, 2013