[2] In 1793, some merchants relocated to The Rotunda, a building designed by George Gooding and modelled on the Halle aux blés in Paris.

[4] In the late 1860s, Ipswich Borough Council decided to commission a more substantial structure: the site they selected was on the north side of King Street.

It was designed by Brightwen Binyon in the Renaissance Revival style, built in ashlar stone at a cost of £25,000 and was officially opened by the then-mayor, Frederick Fish, on 26 July 1882.

[5] The use of the building as a corn exchange declined significantly in the wake of the Great Depression of British Agriculture in the late 19th century.

[6] Instead, it became a public events venue: early speakers included the President of the Board of Trade, Joseph Chamberlain, in January 1885.