Queen's Market History
From stalls on Green Street to a council-owned covered hall, the story of a market that residents and traders fought to keep.
By the Ledger desk2 min read
Photo: Bryn Holmes / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
Queen's Market is a council-owned covered street market next to Upton Park station, trading since 1904 on its present site and known for fresh produce, fish, fabric and low prices from traders serving many communities.
A market with deep roots
Queen's Market is a long-running traditional street market. It began as stalls along Green Street and moved around 1904 to its current location on Queen's Road, the street that gave it its name. Through the 1950s it sold clothes and home furnishings, and after the Second World War immigration from Britain's former colonies turned it into an international draw.
Since 1968 it has traded under a purpose-built, open-ended steel and concrete structure owned and managed by Newham Council. The covered market has stall pitches in the middle, with small shops and kiosks around its edges, so it feels part street market and part arcade.
The fight over redevelopment
In the 2000s a developer drew up plans to demolish the market and replace it with a scheme including a 31-storey tower and new homes. Traders and residents, organised as the Friends of Queen's Market, collected around 12,000 signatures against it, and in May 2009 the Mayor of London directed Newham Council to refuse planning permission. The developer left the scheme in 2010. The market was later listed as an Asset of Community Value, and its future has remained a matter of local debate since.
What to buy and how to get there
Newham Council describes the market as catering to a diverse local population, with African, African-Caribbean and South Asian fresh produce. Expect fresh fruit and vegetables, fish and seafood, meat, costume jewellery, bags, footwear, clothing, fabrics and haberdashery. Its traders serve families who cook fresh dishes at home and make their own clothes, which is why produce and fabric stalls sit side by side.
The market is open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 9am to 6pm. A separate Sunday market runs from 10am to 4pm on the same site. Opening arrangements can change, so check Newham Council's markets page before visiting.
You reach Queen's Market by Tube to Upton Park, on the District and Hammersmith & City lines; the market is right beside the station on Green Street, E13 9BA. Newham Council lists bus routes 5, 25, 58, 86, 104, 115, 238, 325, 330 and 376. Bring a shopping bag and combine the visit with a walk along Green Street.
General information, checked against the sources below at the time of writing. Rules, rates and deadlines change, often each April; confirm with GOV.UK, the council or the organisation concerned before you rely on them. For advice on your own case, Citizens Advice is free.
