Brief history of Walsall markets
In 1412, William Rufus, Lord of the manor of Walsall was granted the right to hold a weekly market on Mondays and a fair on St Matthew's Day and its eve, 20 and 21 September. In 1417, Richard Earl of Warwick and Lord of the Manor of Walsall was granted a market on Tuesdays and also two fairs every year on the Feast of St John on 6 May and another on the Feast of Simon and Jude on 28 October.
By 1818, the Directory of Staffordshire lists Walsall as having the second largest market in the country; the market was mainly a pig market and dealt with as many as 2000 pigs in one day.
In 1864 the market bell hung outside the Guildhall. The bell was used to signal the closing of the market. Once the bell had rung, stallholders were given an hour to clean up and leave. At this time the bell rang at 10pm, but it was brought forward to 8pm during World War One.
By the end of the war, Walsall market sales were held of horses and cattle. In 1945 trading was brought forward once again to 6pm. In 1997 Walsall Market was completely refurbished at a cost in excess of £700,000 and a new bell was erected at the cost of over £13,000. The bell is now electronic and can be still be heard tolling at the start and close of the market
Contact us
Telephone 01922 721139
Email marketsadmin@walsall.gov.uk