Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1888-06-08
elLLINGSGATE. LONDON.
Historic Sketch OF the World. Greatest
Fish Market

Historic Sketch OF the GreAtesS
Fl.h Market
The fish market Of Billingsgate, in Lon
don, supplies soa-food not only 10 the four
million Inhabitants OF the British Empires
capital, but TO most OF England.
Billingsgate market derives It's namo
from Belin, a Kingof tho Britous who built
a water-ga there 400 b. &. IL is the chief
market for fish in London, and has been
where IL Is since A. d. 1923 IL Is about
thousand feet east OF London Bridge and
djoins tho west side OF the custom-housc
Formerly, Billingsgato fish market was
built in the Italian style, with tail bell
tower Tho new market was opened for
trade July -, 1877. Tho bell-tower has
vanished. Tho building presents a river.
frontage OF two lofty stories, tho center
portion somewhat back. Tho wings arc
occupied by taverns.
Along the front OF tho building runs a
broad, floating stage. The width OF the
Thames beside this does not exceed two
hundred fce:. AL the water-craft bring
ing fish have 70 b unloaded across tho
boating wharf Planks afford passage way
for th5 men who carry the fish ashore.
About eight hundred and twenty-five tons
Of fish arr.vo e: Billingsgate daily by
water aad ABOUT twice that quantity by
rail, packed IN leo n iron-bo9ud and pad.
locked boxes twelve or fifteen feet long,
six or eigL. fee. WIDE, and three feet deep.
There is = gre.s multitude Of persons and
. largo feet OF vessels en- gagged IN supply
ing TINS Esl market Steamers take tho
ice aHt "GUr';." out 10 the fishing smacks
IA the North Sea and about tU'ico week
bring in loads o. fsl.
The great hal OF this marite. occupies
the ground for Il tie central portion Of
the bGudinT. THIS hall is divided into one
hundred aal forty Stands" wEore many
OF the fish arc SOL at auction, which re-
minds OF Babel livery body employed
IN tho bui.d.E must be "licensed." There
a.e engaged tore about eleven hundred
P5rtcrs, Ecs.1cs tAo Clerks, police and
~taer5.
Tho "iGni!aJ - process begins when fyo
O'CLOCK stti..es ] o. four hours tho con-
fusion ID terri.c Gud the toll iucessaut.
.'rccise,y AZ H..5 o'c.oc,, IN tho forenoon
tao trat!c mus. cease, f.. tho tsh convey.
aucas MU5t IL cat O.. 80 way c. the torrcn.
OF regular travel
Ths only ".and" approach 70 Dil,lngsgato
10 through Lowe. Thames street, which -
oa!y twcIty-c ~ foot wide, ana can &c
comm late merely two streams o. travel,
one cacA way; thus, any accident stops tho
TRAFFIC. O.iy six yaLs can be unloaded or
lOaGel a. do saino time. IS there AFRO
sometimes fJEr thousand vans, carts and
whee!barrows striving to load or unload
during tho four Lours no wonder that l!ttlo
artery OF commerce IL THIS narrow etreet
becomes cAokoL
As the marke. closes c. Mao O'Clock in
the morning, hundreds OF pounds OF f,sh
are thrown away, because they would not
keep fresh until five O'Clock tho next morn.
ing.
In the basement o, the building the shell.
fish are sold. There arc largo "coppcrs'
whore the purchaser can have his fish
boiled by steam in from ten to twenty
minutes
"Bi!lngsgats, applied 10 very ccarso
language has passed into provcrb.
Bil!ngsgate market must have been
thought Of in tho phrase, "a very arcien.
ana fish-like smell"
Although the market Is very inconven,.
ent, II has not been given up for ths mar.
ket OF the Great Eastern railway Ut Can.
ningtown, nor the Columbia market pre-
sented 70 London by tt, noble Baroness
BurGett Cou.ts Bartlett.
T. C. LAMou.s.