Having seen a couple of reports from the abandoned Fish Market & Red House a few months back I'd been meaning to pop my head in here at some point. Then I noticed the huge dome roof on top of here from down the road one day and realised it wasn't the same place at all. I took a closer look and found a way inside for future use. A few days later I returned with @elliot5200 and spent a couple of hours getting round the place before it got dark. Sadly this wasn't quite enough. It's been locked up since unfortunately but I think we saw the best bits. The architecture is stunning throughout, cast iron beams and spiral staircases everywhere you look, the roof is pretty spectacular too. Most of the rooms upstairs were empty and bland with dodgy floors so I didn't waste time photographing them as daylight was fast disappearing. Here's a tiny bit of history on the place:
Smithfield General Market is an extension of the Smithfield Meat Market. It was built between 1879 and 1883 by architect Sir Horace Jones, who also designed Tower Bridge as well as Billingsgate and Leadenhall Markets. It was originally established for the sale of fruit and vegetables. The Victorian general market site has lain empty for more than 20 years after several failed attempts to redevelop it. The Museum of London has recently made proposals for converting the space into their new premises http://londonist.com/2015/03/museum-of-london-wants-to-move-to-smithfield-market. It appears to have been abandoned for around 20 years or so although I believe Crossrail set up shop in there for a while when the Snow Hill project began.
There's a lot more history to this area, both underground and above ground on every side of the market pretty much. Have a look on here if you're interested https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithfield,_London
Smithfield General Market is an extension of the Smithfield Meat Market. It was built between 1879 and 1883 by architect Sir Horace Jones, who also designed Tower Bridge as well as Billingsgate and Leadenhall Markets. It was originally established for the sale of fruit and vegetables. The Victorian general market site has lain empty for more than 20 years after several failed attempts to redevelop it. The Museum of London has recently made proposals for converting the space into their new premises http://londonist.com/2015/03/museum-of-london-wants-to-move-to-smithfield-market. It appears to have been abandoned for around 20 years or so although I believe Crossrail set up shop in there for a while when the Snow Hill project began.
There's a lot more history to this area, both underground and above ground on every side of the market pretty much. Have a look on here if you're interested https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smithfield,_London
1. A couple of shots from the street....
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4. It doesn't look it from these pictures but it was really dark inside here, I had to use really long exposures.
5. Light painted this one
6. Used flash on this, sorry....
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8. Fish eye was the only way to capture that huge dome roof really
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11. There were a few bits and pieces left around the place if you looked carefully
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14. There was evidence of squatting inside this room on the corner of the building
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I took these next shots in 2014 from the roof of the Grade II listed Central Market up the road which is still in use.
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22. Spot the pill heads leaving Fabric
23. At the corners of the Central Market sit four domed octagonal pavilion towers. You can see a tube train disappearing into a tunnel in the distance.
24. Here you can see the roof of the poultry market. The original Poultry Market designed by Sir Horace Jones was destroyed by fire in 1958. Its Grade II listed replacement building was designed by Sir Thomas Bennett in 1962–63, with a reinforced concrete frame. The main hall is covered by an enormous concrete dome, shaped as an elliptical paraboloid, spanning 69m by 38m and only 3 inches (7.6 cm) thick at the centre. The dome is believed to have been the largest concrete shell structure built at that time in Europe.
Thanks for looking
2.
3.
4. It doesn't look it from these pictures but it was really dark inside here, I had to use really long exposures.
5. Light painted this one
6. Used flash on this, sorry....
7.
8. Fish eye was the only way to capture that huge dome roof really
9.
10.
11. There were a few bits and pieces left around the place if you looked carefully
12.
13.
14. There was evidence of squatting inside this room on the corner of the building
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
I took these next shots in 2014 from the roof of the Grade II listed Central Market up the road which is still in use.
20.
21.
22. Spot the pill heads leaving Fabric
23. At the corners of the Central Market sit four domed octagonal pavilion towers. You can see a tube train disappearing into a tunnel in the distance.
24. Here you can see the roof of the poultry market. The original Poultry Market designed by Sir Horace Jones was destroyed by fire in 1958. Its Grade II listed replacement building was designed by Sir Thomas Bennett in 1962–63, with a reinforced concrete frame. The main hall is covered by an enormous concrete dome, shaped as an elliptical paraboloid, spanning 69m by 38m and only 3 inches (7.6 cm) thick at the centre. The dome is believed to have been the largest concrete shell structure built at that time in Europe.
Thanks for looking
