[1][2] Until 1955 the city's main markets were in Parliament Street and St Sampson's Square.

That year, the market in St Sampson's Square was closed, and the one in Parliament Street was reduced to opening only on Saturdays.

The displaced market stalls were offered space in a newly cleared area between Newgate, Jubbergate and The Shambles.

At the time, the City of York Council stated that the Saturday market was oversubscribed, but that there were spare stalls on other days.

[4] Stalls at the market include Cross of York, which opened in 1957 and won the national Fishmonger of the Year competition in 2020,[8] and Swain Family Butchers, which celebrated is 50th anniversary in 2022.