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. During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, several newspapers were published at Market Square, including Honest John Miller's publication Manufacturers and Farmers Journal and Providence and Pawtucket Advertiser which would later become The Providence Journal. In June 1843, President John Tyler toured New England while considering a potential third-party bid for re-election. One of Tyler's several Providence stops was at Market Square. The president enjoyed a meal at the Franklin House, an inn across from the Market House.
Slave Trade
Up until the late eighteenth century the Brown family were known slave traders, including , and scholars cite , then the epicenter of Providence's trade and markets, as a site for sales of human cargo from Africa and the West Indies. In the mid eighteenth century Rhode Island had more slaves per capita than any other New England colony, and Rhode Island merchants controlled sixty to ninety per cent of the American Slave Trade. In 1783, Moses Brown and other Quakers started a petition to abolish slavery. The growing movement against slavery led the Rhode Island General Assembly to prohibit the importation of slaves into Rhode Island and to pass the Gradual Emancipation Act in 1784, deeming children of slaves freeborn citizens; for decades these laws were largely unenforced.
During the Civil War, Market Square was the site of several public "war meetings" presided by mayor Jabez C. Knight. 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. One such meeting was held in August 1862 to announce the Militia Act of 1862, which gave the state authority to draft. The act also allowed African-Americans to participate in the war as soldiers and war laborers. The announcement was received with "loud cheers." Governor William Sprague IV called for "colored citizens" to form a regiment, and promised to personally accompany this regiment into battle. 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.
Electric lights
In 1882 the first electric arc lights in Providence were installed by the Rhode Island Electric Lighting Company on Market Square and Westminster Street.
On September 7, 1897, the anarchist and feminist Emma Goldman was arrested for "unlawful open air speaking" and "attracting a crowd" 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. 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. After jailing Goldman overnight, the Providence authorities ordered her to leave town within 24 hours, or else face three months imprisonment.
RISD and Student Movements
The Market House was acquired by Rhode Island School of Design in 1948, and Market Square is currently surrounded by RISD's urban campus. In 2016 Market Square was the site of a student organized protest '' decrying persistent 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 legacy of slavery on RISD’s campus and honoring enslaved ancestors. In July 2020 students created the RISD Anti-Racism Coalition, , dedicated to combating the institution's prolonged history of racism, anti-blackness, marginalization and discrimination. Article VI of risdARC's demands the right for Black and Indigenous students to reclaim and rename Market House for the advancement of BAAD.
