Home again, home again, dancing a jig;
To market, to market, to buy a fat hog;
Home again, home again, jiggety-jog
To market, to market, to buy a plum bun,
Home again, home again, market is done!
Saturday morning we got up and drove to Lincoln, NE (about 90 miles) to visit the Historic Haymarket. My dear friend, Rose and her family sell their beautiful melons and pumpkins there each year. I love Farmer’s Markets and have always wanted to make the trip and see this particular market. It was not a disappointing trip. We saw vendors selling produce of all sorts including some of the most warty, interesting looking pumpkins and gourds, food vendors selling ethnic yummys, crafts people selling knitted items, soaps, painted signs, baked goods, etc. We came home with pumpkins, squashes, a bunch of fresh basil, a loaf of artisan bread and a whole lot of sweet memories. I'll make it a point to visit Haymarket again next year!
And speaking of next year, my daughter and I will be offering our homemade soaps at our local Farmer’s Market starting next spring. Not a market that really compares to the Haymarket but a nice small town gathering. I make it a point to visit most Saturday mornings during the season.
Haymarket History (from www. lincolnhaymarket.com) Why Haymarket?
The ‘Haymarket’ name can be traced to Lincoln’s first decade. In the original plat of Lincoln of 1867, a ‘Market Square’ was designated between ‘O’ and ‘P’ Streets from 9th to 10th. That square was an open-air market for produce and livestock, as well as a camping ground for immigrants and general gathering place. Machines, wagons and animals thronged Market Square, along with land sharks, tin-horn gamblers and the other denizens of a pioneer town.
When the federal government decided to erect a post office and courthouse in Lincoln in 1874, the city and state donated the original ‘Market Square’ and moved its functions two blocks north, creating ‘Haymarket Square’ bounded by 9th and 10th, ‘Q’ and ‘R’ Streets. Scales were provided for weighing hay, cattle and produce. Haymarket Square continued ‘to provide space for the teams and wagons of country fold, a mart for hay and a camping ground’ well into the 1880s. It became the location for the first City Hall from 1886 until 1906. Today it serves a version of its original function as a city-owned parking lot.
The Haymarket name survives in the historic warehouse district immediately west of the old Haymarket Square. The Lincoln City Council designated the eight block Haymarket Landmark District in 1982, giving it recognition and protection as a major element of Lincoln’s heritage. The National Park Service subsequently certified Haymarket as the equivalent of a district listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the protection and privileges of that status. In 1985 Haymarket was selected as a demonstration project by the National Main Street Center. Haymarket is the first urban warehouse district to undertake that highly successful economic revitalization program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
While we were in downtown Lincoln we dicided to visit Licorice International. Oh, was that fun!
Licorice in every size, shape and flavor you could ever dream of from all over the world. We came home with a Black Licorice Bridge Mix and an Australian Licorice that was wonderful. We also sampled some others that were just as good. A very fun side trip.
