On Saturday, 28 October, Paddington Markets will celebrate their 50th anniversary.
Since 1973, the markets have been a fixture for the local community.
They began as the brainchild of the late Rev. Peter Holden. Rev. Holden is considered by many to be a visionary young minister who had just returned to Sydney after helping to organise the legendary Woodstock music festival.
In a vision document ahead of the market’s launch, he outlined the role the markets were to play in his ministry.
“Paddington is a community with a large proportion of artists,” Rev. Holden wrote.
“They are our parish and we have the responsibility for ministering to them in appropriate ways.”
The markets have since been an activity of Paddington Uniting Church, expanding in 1984 to include the grounds of Paddington Public School.
In an article published in Local Pado, Uniting Church ministers Rev. Danielle Hemsworth-Smith and Rev. Trish Rooney said they were proud to continue Rev. Holden’s legacy.
“Peter Holden was quite a minister and it’s thanks to him that we sit on the fringe of a traditional church. To be honest, it’s a fabulous legacy to play with. It gives us a sense of possibility.”
Rev. Rooney told Local Pado that Paddington Uniting Church’s role in the markets often surprised people.
“They’re always surprised to find it is an active place of worship and the one that’s responsible for the markets,” she said.
Rev. Dr Rod Pattenden was minister at Paddington for 17 years. He told Local Pado that the markets reflected the Uniting Church’s ethos. The market has raised money for the local school over the years, including for its band to buy equipment.
“Because it’s been nurtured by the church, the markets have always maintained those values about community, creativity, and doing good things with the money it has raised,” he said.
While the markets still currently attract a lot of foot traffic, Rev. Hemsworth-Smith previously told Insights they have yet to return to pre-COVID levels due to lower numbers of tourism.
“Things are slowly improving and we hope that our foot traffic will be stronger than ever soon,” she said.
According to Rev. Hemsworth Smith, Paddington Markets aims to be to provide space for creativity and positive community transformation in the local community. It provides a place of trade for artisans and small businesses.
“Because the purpose of the markets has not changed, we would like to think our identity has not changed too much- we continue to be an inclusive and creative place of welcome and community transformation,” Rev. Hemsworth-Smith said.
Paddington Markets will host a special market to commemorate their 50th anniversary on Saturday, 28 October from 10am. For more information, visit the official website here.
