At the end of the 1800s, buying food in Turku meant crowded open markets, mud and flies. The town decided to build something modern: a clean, bright hall of brick and iron where meat, fish and butter could be sold under one roof.
Why a hall?
- Chaos on the square. Trade in the market places had long been chaotic, and it could not meet the standards of hygiene Well documented.
- Everything indoors. The plan was to move all market trade indoors, into clean premises Well documented.
- An expert architect. The hall was designed by Gustaf Nyström, who had designed Finland’s first market hall in Helsinki, opened in 1889. He had toured Europe to study market halls Well documented.
- Second in Finland. The Turku hall opened in 1896 and is the second-oldest market hall in Finland Well documented.
The building
- A whole block. The hall is 118.5 metres long, 30 metres wide and 13 metres high. It runs the length of a whole city block Well documented.
- Brick and iron. About 300,000 bricks and more than 42 tonnes of iron went into it Well documented.
- Meat and fish. At first the hall had about 150 shops, and 53 of them sold fresh meat. Live fish, such as pike, eel, bream and flounder, swam in aquariums until they were sold Likely.
- “Splendid”. When the hall was finished, the newspaper Uusi Aura wrote: “The space is turning out fairly dainty and the interiors give a splendid impression” Well documented.
- Gas, then electricity. The hall was lit by gas until 1932, when electric light came. Running water was installed in 1905 Well documented.
Changing times
- Groceries by bike. In the 1930s errand boys and porters delivered groceries from the hall by bicycle Well documented.
- Cold counters. The first refrigerated counters came in 1957 Well documented.
- Nearly demolished. In 1960 a bank held a competition for a new office building. The winning design, by the architect Viljo Revell, would have replaced the hall. People protested, and the hall was saved Well documented.
- A big renovation. A renovation plan was approved on 6 January 1976. Steel counters replaced the marble ones, and the number of shops was halved Well documented.
- Protected. Today the hall has the highest level of protection as a historic building Well documented.
A food town
- Butter for export. By 1852 butter was Turku’s most important export (stop 29) Well documented.
- Turku mustard. Much later, in 1948, the Turku food company Jalostaja launched Turun sinappi, “Turku mustard”, with Turku Castle on its label Well documented.
- A cheese named after a river. Aura cheese, a blue cheese, takes its name from the river Aura, although it is made in Äänekoski in central Finland Well documented.
- Test yourself. The quiz below has more about Turku’s food classics.
How do we know?
The hall’s own history, newspapers such as Uusi Aura and the city’s building records tell its story. Some details differ. English Wikipedia says the hall first had 151 shops, while the hall’s own website says 15, which looks like a typing error on one side. We have not found the exact opening day; the hall celebrates its birthday in mid-October.