Fruit Exchange
History
The Fruit Exchange was orginally built in 1888 as a depot to supply rail goods to London and North Western railway. In 1923 it was converted into an auction house by James B Hutchins. Hundreds of buyers would flock to the exchange to bid on exotic fruits which came in to the docks from all across the world. The fruit would come up in a lift from the basement through a trap door into the auction room. This meant that consumers could see and sample what they were going to buy. Both of the rooms combined held the capacity of around 700 people. I'm unsure exactly when the exchange was closed. It is still registered as a Grade II listed building. The redevelopment has already started and the director of the company who owns the building, quoted in 2016 that since 2009 around £500,000 has been spent on it's restoration.
Visit
I was a bit late on the bus with this one. Sadly I couldn't see other parts of the building due to builders and didn't have a lot of time in there (hence the lack of photos) but it was worth it to see the beautiful auction rooms
Exterior of the building taken in 1940
Photos courtesy of National Museum Liverpool
Thanks for looking!
History
The Fruit Exchange was orginally built in 1888 as a depot to supply rail goods to London and North Western railway. In 1923 it was converted into an auction house by James B Hutchins. Hundreds of buyers would flock to the exchange to bid on exotic fruits which came in to the docks from all across the world. The fruit would come up in a lift from the basement through a trap door into the auction room. This meant that consumers could see and sample what they were going to buy. Both of the rooms combined held the capacity of around 700 people. I'm unsure exactly when the exchange was closed. It is still registered as a Grade II listed building. The redevelopment has already started and the director of the company who owns the building, quoted in 2016 that since 2009 around £500,000 has been spent on it's restoration.
Visit
I was a bit late on the bus with this one. Sadly I couldn't see other parts of the building due to builders and didn't have a lot of time in there (hence the lack of photos) but it was worth it to see the beautiful auction rooms
Exterior of the building taken in 1940
Photos courtesy of National Museum Liverpool
Thanks for looking!
