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1889-00-00

1889-00-00: (Construction of the Iron Market Begins in Port-au-Prince, a Massive Structure Originally Built as a Train Station for Cairo That Became One of H…

Haitian

1889-00-00: (Construction of the Iron Market Begins in Port-au-Prince, a Massive Structure Originally Built as a Train Station for Cairo That Became One of Haiti’s Most Iconic Commercial Buildings Before Its Destruction in the 2010 Earthquake): In 1889, construction began on the Iron Market in Port-au-Prince during Hyppolite’s presidency. The structure was a vast iron edifice designed to look like a mosque, complete with four minarets, built by a French company for sale as a railroad station in Cairo, Egypt. When the Egyptian sale fell through, the structure was diverted to Haiti. A vast array of consumer goods and artisan products could be purchased inside. The Iron Market became one of Port-au-Prince’s most recognizable landmarks, a gathering place where the commercial energy of the Haitian people was visible in every stall and every transaction. It stood for over a century through coups, occupations, and hurricanes before the 2010 earthquake destroyed it. The market’s origin story was itself a parable of Haiti’s relationship with the world: a building designed for somewhere else, ending up in the Black republic because the original buyer did not want it.