History of Queen Victoria Market

Read the Queen Victoria Market masterplan to find out how the Market will be developed in the future, to retain the historic character while keeping the stallholders in a competitive position.

In its 130 years, Queen Victoria Market has had a colourful and sometimes controversial history. During that time, the site has been a cemetery, a livestock market and a wholesale fruit and vegetable market. Each of these operations has its own history and an element of controversy.

The Queen Victoria Market was officially opened on 20 March 1878, a range of markets having operated from the site in varying forms prior to that date.

The Market Town

Melbourne has always been a Market town. Its residents have always had a fascination with Markets, and this tradition continues even today. The Melbourne City Council was originally established in 1842 to manage the City's many markets, of which one was Queen Victoria Market.

Western Market

This was Melbourne's first official fruit and vegetable market, established a mere 6 years after settlement began. In its early years, the Western Market was a general market; in the end, a wholesale cased fruit market. It lasted for ninety years, taking up the city block bounded by Market, Collins and William Streets and Flinders Lane, a site now occupied by the AXA Centre.

Eastern Market

The development and expansion of Melbourne to the east lead to the establishment of the Eastern Market and ultimately to the decline of the Western Market. The Eastern Market was demolished in 1962 to make way for the Southern Cross Hotel. Much more heavily frequented by the general public than the Western Market, the Eastern Market grew, matured, changed and died.

Hay Market

In 1841, at the corner of Little Collins and Exhibition streets, about three quarters of an acre of the reserve which remained next to the building used for a 'female penitentiary' was designated as a future site for a general market by the Market Commissioners. At the time, unofficially, it was used as a hay and corn market. At the request of the Council, it was proclaimed a general market site on 1 August 1846, and immediately became the official hay and corn market in place of the one which had operated on the site where St. Paul's Cathedral now stands.

Melbourne remains a Market town with many large municipal markets including South Melbourne, Prahran and Dandenong Markets. However, Queen Victoria Market is the largest and most intact of all Melbourne's great 19th century markets.

The Lower Market

The Lower Market (bounded by Elizabeth, Victoria, Queen and Therry Streets) is the oldest part of the Market. It was originally set aside in 1857 for a fruit and vegetable market due to over-crowding and congestion at the Eastern Market but the location was unpopular and the market gardeners wouldn't use it. Instead, it was used as a livestock and hay market until it was permanently reserved as a Market in 1867.

The following year, a substantial brick building was erected on Elizabeth Street and this became a Wholesale Meat Market. However, the wholesale meat trade soon became dissatisfied with the site and relocated to the Metropolitan Meat Market building in Courtney Street, North Melbourne. The building was then turned over to a Retail Meat and Fish Market and slaughterhouse.

In 1878, the Market sheds G, H, I & J were built on the site and wholesaling and retailing of fruit and vegetables occurred for the first time. While H & I Sheds still stand, G Shed was removed to construct the current Meat Hall loading bay and a block of public toilets. The original J Shed burnt down and is now a public plaza. In 1880, the Elizabeth Street shops were constructed following the realignment of Elizabeth Street. This also allowed the Meat Hall to be extended, and the present facade to be constructed in 1884. The Dairy Produce Hall (also known as the Deli Hall) was the last of the buildings to be built on this part of the Market, and was constructed in 1929.

The Upper Market

The Upper Market (bounded by Queen, Victoria, Peel and Franklin Streets) was not originally reserved as a market but had a number of other uses including a school and drill hall. Its predominant use, however, was as Melbourne's first cemetery. Construction of A-F sheds began in 1877 at the northern-most edge of the Market. This site was chosen because it contained the school, drill hall and the least-used section of the cemetery.

By 1930, the remainder of the site had been built upon. Between 1903 and 1905 A-C Sheds were extended to Peel Street, while D-F Sheds were not extended until 1922. That same year, the Queen Street and Peel Street verandahs were also constructed. The roofing of the centreway occurred in 1927. In 1929-1930 the large K and L Sheds were constructed for growers.

In 1929-30, the City of Melbourne constructed 60 brick stores on the current car park to house the wholesale agents and merchants. However, allegations of corruption and racketeering and a Royal Commission in 1960 led to the decision to relocate the Wholesale Market to Footscray in 1969. A single row of the Agents stores along Franklin Street is all that remains of the Merchants section of the Market.

Protecting the Market

The separation of the Wholesale Market from the Retail Market lead to a plan to redevelop the Queen Victoria Market site into a trade centre, office and hotel complex in the 1970s. However, public outcry prevented this and resulted in the Market being classified by the National Trust. Later, the Market site and its buildings were listed on the Historic Buildings Register.

Queen Victoria Market survives today as one of the largest and most intact examples of Melbourne's great nineteenth century markets.

A Green Market

Queen Victoria Market is conscious of the environmental impacts of business, and has taken a number of steps to ensure the increased sustainability of the Market as a whole.

In 2007, the Melbourne City Council will undertake a Water Harvesting project at the Market, contributing a total of over $540,000 to the budget for the project, which also received external funding of $250,000.

In the 1990s, 1,328 solar panels were installed on the Market's F Shed, with the assistance of BP Solar and Origin Energy.

The installation, which generates 252 megawatts of electricity for use within the Market, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 369 tonnes each year, reflects the commitment of both the Market and the City of Melbourne to using renewable energy. The panels have helped Council towards its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to zero (net) across the municipality over the next two decades.

In recent years, the Market has rallied behind the push to reduce plastic bag usage and landfill. The Market has introduced its own branded, reusable shopping bags that are produced using recycled materials. The uptake of these green shopping bags has been so strong that the Market continues to sell them today.

Queen Victoria Market green shopping bags are available from the Market Office at 513 Elizabeth Street.

Market Conservation

The Queen Victoria Market site is listed as an historic place by Heritage Victoria. Many of the buildings are also listed as notable buildings on the Historic Building Register of Victoria.

Queen Victoria Market Pty Ltd continues to work with Heritage Victoria to conserve and restore the Market, and has retained the services of Lovell Chen, Conservation Architect to consult on the best ways to conserve and restore the Market's building fabric.

A collective vision for The Market's future has been assured by the Masterplan, which outlines a path for the preservation and development of this invaluable icon for generations to come.

Projects undertaken to date include:

Restoration of A- E Sheds	1970s
Refurbishment of Victoria Street Shops (83-159)	1986
Refurbishment of Victoria Street Double Storey (Shops 65-81)	1995
Refurbishment of Elizabeth Street Shops	1991
Restoration of Victoria Street slate rooves (83-159)	2004
Restoration of timber columns - A to E Sheds	2004
Drainage Works in the Lower Market - H & I Sheds	2005
Drainage Works in the Upper Market (MCC)	2006
Refurbishment of the Meat Hall	2006
Refurbishment of the Dairy Produce Hall (part complete)	2006
Re-rendering of exterior of the Elizabeth Street Shops (part complete)	2006

Other proposed major works in the next 5 years include:

Refurbishment of the Food Court

estimated $1.0 million