Sidney’s courtsquare open market of the mid-1800’s was located on the south side of the square. "...each week the family loaded up the buggy and wagons with homemade products such as butter, soap, milk, eggs, fresh side meat, chickens, fruits, vegetables, cream, noodles, bread and cornbread. From these sales and hard work these families were able to survive and prosper," according to a history of the Shelby County Fair published in the 1998 fair premium booklet.

An 1892 city ordinance established a "public market" in Sidney after more than 300 farmers petitioned city council. Council readily agreed with the proposal, probably seeing it as a way to encourage downtown business. "If it is a success it will bring people to Sidney who make it a business to go elsewhere, and it is altogether probable that they may have considerable to do with Sidney merchants," editorialized the Shelby County Democrat (June 17, 1892).

The Democrat chided local agriculturists for their tardy first-day participation in the revived enterprise: It was supposed that some of the petitioners or at least some farmer of the county would be first in the field, but this was not the case. At 7:30 this morning two children, Perry and Florence Develvis, children of Allen Develvis of Adams township, Champaign county, backed their covered spring wagon against the curbing north of G. F. Yenney’s meat stand, put their horse in a livery stable--a good example for others who come after them--and at once began selling vegetables and berries. The little people live three miles south of Quincy, and had driven nearly ten miles.

The new market stood along North Street, its north side between Main and Ohio (now occupied by the William A. Ross, Jr., Historical Center, a photography studio, and apartments) and its south side between Main and Miami (now the Alcove Restaurant, apartments, church parking lot). It was open from daylight to 1 p.m. on Wednesdays and from noon until 10 p.m. on Saturday, recalling a long-vanished era of downtown, Saturday night shopping and socializing that really survived into the mid-twentieth century.