Colonial era

In the 17th century the land comprising modern day Market Square was originally owned by Chad Brown, progenitor of the Brown family, later affiliated with Brown University.^{[citation needed]}

The square's origin lies in a 1738 order by the Providence Town Council, which established a highway 123 feet in width, extending from Towne Street (now South Main Street) to the Great Bridge. At the time, the area was known as the Town Parade.^[2]

In 1744, a Haymarket was organized at the site, establishing the square as a local center of commerce.^[3]

The square's focal structure, Market House, was constructed between 1773 and 1775.

On March 2, 1775, Providence residents, inspired by the then-recent Boston Tea Party, gathered in Market Square to protest the Tea Act. The colonists heaped a large pile of English tea in the center of the square, covering the mound with a barrel of tar and lighting it ablaze.^[4]

Black history

As the commercial hub of colonial Providence, Market Square has been suggested as the likely site of slave sales, which constituted a significant portion of commerce in the 18th century city.^[5] The identification of the site as a slave market, however, has not been confirmed by primary sources. Historical references to slave sales in Providence suggest that these transactions traditionally occurred in private, commercial establishments rather than in a central, public space.^[6]

Enslaved black laborers contributed to the 1775 construction of Market House. Among these laborers was Pero Paget, a stonemason who also worked to build nearby University Hall at Brown University^[7]

In the 18th and 19th centuries, Market Square served as an important commercial venue for free Black entrepreneurs in the city.^[8]

19th century

In June 1843, President John Tyler toured New England while considering a potential third-party bid for re-election.^[9] One of Tyler's several Providence stops was at Market Square.^[9] The president enjoyed a meal at the Franklin House, an inn across from the Market House.^[9]

The 1847 construction of Union Station effectively shifted the city's commercial center to Exchange Place in Downtown Providence.^[10]

During the Civil War, Market Square was the site of several public "war meetings" presided by mayor Jabez C. Knight.^[11][12][13] During these meetings, public officials and dignitaries made public announcements and attempted to build up enlistment and support for the Union side during the war.^[11][12][13]

One such meeting was held in August 1862 to announce the Militia Act of 1862,^[12] which gave the state authority to draft.^[14] The act also allowed African-Americans to participate in the war as soldiers and war laborers.^[15] The announcement was received with "loud cheers."^[12] Governor William Sprague IV called for "colored citizens" to form a regiment, and promised to personally accompany this regiment into battle.^[12] In July 1863, after the Enrollment Act established a national draft, a blindfolded official selected names of conscripted men from a wheel in Market Square.^[13]

In 1882 the first electric arc lights in Providence were installed by the Rhode Island Electric Lighting Company on Market Square and Westminster Street.^[3]

On September 7^[16] (or September 8^[17]), 1897, the anarchist and feminist Emma Goldman was arrested for "unlawful open air speaking" and "attracting a crowd"^[1] when she attempted to speak in at Market Square, during a four-month lecture tour. The mayor of Providence had warned Goldman that she would be arrested if she spoke in Providence.^[17] She had been traveling to lecture on topics such as "Why I am an Anarchist-Communist," "Woman", "Marriage", the recent assassination of the Spanish Premier, and a speech "Berkman's Unjust Sentence," about Alexander Berkman's imprisonment for the murder of Henry Clay Frick.^[16] After jailing Goldman overnight, the Providence authorities ordered her to leave town within 24 hours, or else face three months imprisonment.^[16][17]

RISD

Market House was acquired by Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in 1948; Market Square is currently surrounded by the school's urban campus.^[18]

In 2016 Market Square was the site of a student organized protest 'Not Your Token' decrying racism and elitism on campus. Student organizers from Black Artists and Designers, created a list of mandates, which included increased hiring and retainment of faculty of color, faculty trainings and curricular changes. Protestors also demanded a memorial be erected in Market Square, acknowledging the site's purported associations with slavery and honoring victims of slavery in Rhode Island.^[19]

In September 2023, a bronze sculpture of Providence artist Edward Mitchell Bannister by local sculptor Gage Prentiss was unveiled in Market Square.^[20] Bannister is depicted as life size, sitting on a bench.^[20]