Corn Exchange, Sydney, Historic market building in Sydney Central Business District, Australia.
Corn Exchange at Sussex Street is a three-story brick building with elliptical arches, a pyramidal roof, and curving corners in Queen Anne style. The structure uses a German system of brick and cast-iron framing designed specifically for fire resistance.
The building was constructed in 1887 by architect George McRae and initially operated as a fruit market before converting to offices in 1891. Over the 20th century it underwent further changes, adapting to Sydney's evolving needs.
The name comes from the grain market opened in the Corporation Buildings in 1900, a private attempt to give Sydney a corn exchange; trade faded as transport moved away from the inner harbour. From the 1970s the building housed PACT Youth Theatre, a site of experimental performance. The name of mayor Alban Joseph Riley, in office in 1887, is carved over the corner entrance door.
The building stands at 173–185 Sussex Street, on the corner of Market Street, at the eastern end of Pyrmont Bridge. The Western Distributor viaduct now runs between it and the former wharf, so it is seen from the walkway rather than entered. It has been commercial office space since the 1990s, so the interior is not open to visitors.
The mayor's name, Alban Joseph Riley, is carved above the corner entrance door, dating the building to his 1887 term. Behind the Corn Exchange, near Market and Sussex Streets, the isolated easternmost plinth and lamppost of Pyrmont Bridge survive, cut off when the Western Distributor viaduct was built in the 1980s.
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