America's oldest continously-operating Market house.

Established in 1860, the Broad Street Market helped feed the 300,000 Union soldiers stationed at nearby Camp Curtin.

Historic.

Serving as the long-time anchor of retail activity in the Midtown business corridor and only three blocks north of the Pennsylvania Capitol Building, the Broad Street Market fills three city blocks between Third and Sixth streets. Beginning in 1860 as an effort to feed 300,000 Union soldiers stationed at nearby Camp Curtin, the older Stone Building was completed in 1863 and the Market expanded with an Brick Building, constructed between 1874 and 1878. For many years, a Wood Building of farm construction extended between the Stone and Brick Buildings. Five markets once graced Harrisburg: Market Square, the Hill Farmers Market (later known as Kline Village), Kelker Street Market, and two Chestnut Street Markets.

By the 1920s, the Broad Street Market had over 725 vendors, many of whom leased outdoor space and waited years for an indoor stand to become available. John N. Kinnard, the Market Manager at the time, noted that one small farmer might sell just a few dozen eggs while another sold more than $2,000 worth of live turkeys in one day. Back then, the Broad Street Market was known as the "Dutch Fair" because of the predominance of Amish and Mennonite vendors. At its centennial in 1960, the Market housed 300 vendors and a variety of trends had begun to diminish its prominence. Sometime earlier, the Wood Building was demolished, and outdoor vending was banned by a City of Harrisburg ordinance. This led to a steady loss of business as competition from supermarkets and suburban retail centers began to increase.

In 1974, the Broad Street Market was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in recognition of the Market's rich history and contributions. Originally built and operated as a private business, the Harrisburg Market House Corporation eventually sold the complex to the Harrisburg Redevelopment Authority in 1975. By 1979, it was transferred to the City of Harrisburg, which established the Broad Street Market Authority as a new operating entity. By 1996, the City of Harrisburg completed a $2.5 million award-winning restoration of the Market complex, which was designed to reposition it as a successful and growth-oriented retail enterprise.

In 1997, responding to recommendations by nationally-renowned market consultant David K. O'Neil, the City of Harrisburg took steps to place the operation under local community management. The result was the creation of a new Broad Street Market Corporation, a community-managed enterprise founded and owned by Historic Harrisburg Association. In 2017, the Broad Street Market Corporation was replaced by the Broad Street Market Alliance, a private non-profit 501(c)(3) which governs and oversees the Market's operations to this day.

Tragedy struck in 2023, when an electrical fire in a ceiling fan nearly destroyed the entire Brick Building, resulting in the displacement of dozens of vendors, many of whom are now running their businesses out of a new temporary tent structure built adjacent to the Stone Building. As the restoration process continues and the Broad Street Market Alliance recovers from the resulting financial distress, thanks to an outpouring of community support, one thing is clear: the Broad Street Market's brightest days are still ahead.