- Portland Saturday Market
The Portland Saturday Market is the largest outdoor
arts and crafts market in continuous operation in theUnited States . [Associated Press, "Portland's Saturday Market Opens" [http://www.kgw.com/news-local/stories/kgw_022908_lifestyle_saturday_market.1bbbd6c.html] ] It is held every Saturday and Sunday from March to December under the west end of theBurnside Bridge inPortland, Oregon . In addition, the market has a "Festival of the Last Minute", which runs daily untilChristmas Eve . The market has over 400 vendors who generate about $8 million in gross sales annually and attract over 750,000 visitors to the historic Old Town district of Portland each year.Fact|date=February 2007The market is accessible by foot, bicycle, and TriMet's
MAX Light Rail line which stops within the market at the Skidmore Fountain stop besideSkidmore Fountain .History
The market was founded in
1974 by craftspeople Sheri Teasdale and Andrea Scharf, who modeled it after the Saturday Market inEugene, Oregon . It was founded as a mutual benefit corporation, under which all members would share in the cost and governance of the market, yet keep all profits they receive from selling their items. All items sold at the Saturday Market are required to be handmade by the person selling it, and a committee of members judge each new item against a minimum standard of quality.References
External links
* [http://www.saturdaymarket.org/ Official website]
* [http://www.MixtGoods.com/ Offers crafts from the market]
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