Union Market is the heart and soul of a broader district bringing a renewed spirit to the neighborhood. We are a year-round indoor market featuring 40 local artisans. Hours: Fri 11-8 & Sat-Sun 8-8

About Union Market

 

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Vision

EDENS sees a bright future for the Union Market district defined by people, passion and possibility. An urban village born from the diversity of the dreams and energy of the nation’s capital. An authentic market of culture and commerce. A true gathering place that serves as an inviting melting pot of old world heritage and new world opportunities. From its roots as Centre Market, a fresh food venue born over 200 years ago, it’s been a great unifier for DC – connecting people from a variety of backgrounds. It will prove to be that creative spark again. An authentic district that expands beyond its culinary origins to include music, retail, hotel and residential uses. An organic source for economic growth, Union Market is a vision that has to be realized. It will be DC’s discovery destination. A pioneering place where vision not only matters but materializes into a thriving, relevant and culturally rich district of sights, sounds and tastes.

History of the Market

1871 | 1931 | 1962 | 1989 | TODAY

1871

Centre Market

Centre Market, once the largest market in Washington, D.C., opened to the public in 1871. By 1900, it was the center of a vibrant commercial life in Washington, D. C. Close to a railroad station and streetcar lines, sitting between the White House and the Capitol Building, the market was a crossroads for all of Washington, D. C. After years of success, it was torn down in 1931 to make way for the National Archives. Undaunted, many of the businesses relocated and created a new venue, Union Terminal Market at 4th Street and Florida Avenue NE, an area close to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Freight Terminal and highways to Maryland.


1931

Union Terminal Market

Union Terminal Market opened to the public in February 1931. The market featured large, airy, well lit indoor stalls for 700 vendors, cold storage vaults, elevators and a public café. Vendors sold meats, fish, dairy and produce six days a week.


1962

Union Terminal Market

In 1962 however, the city banned the outdoor sale of meats and eggs which essentially killed the farmer’s market foot traffic. A new indoor market was built in 1967 (the building which is now the revitalized Union Market).

Paul & Brenda Pascal of Kolker Poultry Co. share their family’s history of Union Market


1989

Union Market

Wholesale operations continued to grow in the broader market area until the 1980s when the aging industrial spaces began to show signs of wear and tear and many of the original merchants left the area for modern distribution centers and supermarkets in the suburbs.


Today

Union Market

Union Market will be the heart and soul of a broader district bringing a renewed spirit to the neighborhood. The market district will once again be the engine of entrepreneurial spirit. Currently, more than 100 businesses employ 1,500 people in food production and distribution. It is a rare place in the city where a wide variety of ethnic groups and diverse social-economic groups come together and share the same spirit of community. Surrounding the market will be a vibrant mix of retail, restaurants, hotel, entertainment, incubator space for new food concepts as well as retail and wholesale space. EDENS is proud to be a part of this urban village.
Michael DeFrancisci, owner of A. Litteri’s, an Italian grocer in the market
since 1926