Thefts at the City Market

By Connor DeMerchant - 7 October 2026

The Saint John City Market has always been a busy place. For generations, merchants have brought their goods to the Market, shoppers have filled its aisles, and thousands of people have passed through its doors. Where there are people, however, there are sometimes thieves. Saint John newspapers reveal that theft has been an occasional, and sometimes persistent, part of the Market’s history. In fact, reports of theft at Saint John’s market predate the present City Market building. In March 1875, a newspaper reported that a crock of butter belonging to William Henderson of Springfield, Kings County, had been stolen from the Country Market. A few weeks later, a second crock of butter was stolen.[1] Theft was a regular occurrence at this open-air market. 

Even in the new market building which opened in 1876, theft was a noticeable problem. A July 1879 report described the “Country Market,” as the City Market was then commonly known, as having been visited by “sneak thieves” who had been picking handkerchiefs from ladies’ pockets. Pocketbooks containing money were also being taken. Market officials and others had apparently been keeping watch for suspicious characters, particularly on Saturday nights, but had difficulty catching anyone in the act. That changed one Saturday night when a young thief was caught in the act. Three young men witnessed him snatching a handkerchief from the pocket of a woman passing through the Market. They seized the boy and turned him over to the deputy clerk, who in turn handed him over to two police officers. The newspaper concluded that his arrest would likely have “a summary effect upon the rest of the gang.”[2] By December 1882, however, the problem had not disappeared. A woman visiting from the country reported to police that her pocketbook had been stolen in the Country Market, and the newspaper noted that several petty thefts had been reported there during the preceding months, although none of the suspected pickpockets had yet been caught.[3]

These early reports are a reminder that the Market was not simply a place where food was bought and sold. It was also a crowded public space where shoppers carried money and personal belongings, merchants displayed valuable goods, and thieves could take advantage of the activity around them. In August 1913, the newspaper reported the arrest of Ellen Murray, also known as Collins, who was accused of stealing eggs from Thomas F. Granville at the City Market. She was also charged with stealing a box of berries from James E. Quinn’s stall a few days earlier. As this episode reveals, the petty theft of ordinary products sold at the Market has long been an issue.[4]

In November 1913, two fifteen-year-old boys, Victor Cobham and Fred Wilson, were arrested after being accused of rifling the till of George B. Cowell, a commission merchant in the City Market. About $50 was reportedly taken. According to the newspaper account, the theft occurred at approximately 9:30 on a Saturday night. The two boys allegedly entered the stall and distracted the clerks while one or both opened the till and removed the money. They escaped before the theft was noticed. Police quickly became involved, and warrants were issued for their arrest. Both were eventually apprehended that night after separate searches through the city.[5] This being the latest in a long string of thefts and petty crimes committed by Cobham and Wilson, both boys were sent to the Boys’ Industrial Home, a reformatory. 

Over the past century and a half, the Market has also suffered a number of break and enters after hours. Among these was an attempted robbery in 1983. A man named Baker was sentenced to twelve months after pleading guilty to breaking into the City Market with the intention of committing theft. A police officer on foot patrol near the building heard a burglar alarm and investigated, discovering that screens had been torn from a window near the top of a fire escape. The suspect had apparently made his way into the building and entered the office of the Market’s deputy clerk. Police found him carrying a briefcase containing money and business papers toward the lower floor, where he was apprehended.[6]

By the early twenty-first century, theft at the Market had adapted to the modern age. In May 2002, thieves targeted an ATM at the head of the City Market. The machine was destroyed sometime overnight and was discovered in pieces at approximately seven o’clock the following morning. An undisclosed amount of money was taken.[7] The same period also produced complaints about a more familiar kind of theft: shoplifting. One newspaper report described growing frustration among Market merchants who believed theft was becoming an increasingly serious problem. Cliff Wilson of St. Croix Creations described the Market as “a haven for shoplifters,” reporting that merchandise worth anywhere from $50 to several hundred dollars was disappearing. Other merchants reported similar experiences. Lynn Van Tassel of the City Market Studio said she had lost thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise, including framed prints and wood-turned bowls, while Bruce MacLeod, of Land & Sea and Pat’s Secret Garden, said he had noticed an increase in theft, particularly of clothing that could easily be taken out of the Market and sold elsewhere. The merchants described a familiar pattern: thieves could wait until a store employee was occupied with another customer, pick up an item, and disappear into the crowd. In response, merchants moved valuable goods closer to themselves, increased their vigilance, and discussed additional security measures such as mirrors and surveillance cameras.[8]

The problem was not confined to merchants’ stalls either. In 2014, the Market also became the scene of a theft from a charitable fundraising table. Busy Paws, a non-profit organization raising money for the Saint John SPCA Animal Rescue and other animal welfare work, had been using a table in the Market’s Germain Street entrance vestibule free of charge. Two young men allegedly approached the table while two women were attending it and stole the charity’s donation can. The incident was particularly troubling because the Market had provided space for non-profit organizations for years. According to then Market manager Kevin Loughery, more than sixty different groups had used the space for fundraising in 2013, and there had never previously been a security concern involving the tables. The theft therefore prompted the Market to reconsider its policies.[9]

Taken together, these newspaper reports reveal just a small number of the incidents of theft in the Market’s history. For nearly a century and a half, the Market has been a place where people came together, and where some people saw opportunities to take what did not belong to them. The Market’s crowds, busy stalls, distracted shoppers, and constantly changing stream of visitors have long provided opportunities for theft. 

[1] “Theft From the Market.” The Daily Telegraph. 20 March 1875, Pg. 3.

“Another Theft from the Market.” The Daily Telegraph. 24 March 1875, Pg. 3.

[2] “Caught in the Act.” The Daily Telegraph. 14 July 1879, Pg. 3.

[3] “Pickpockets in the Market.” The Daily Telegraph. 21 December 1882, Pg. 3.

[4] “Theft in Market.” The St. John Standard. 15 August 1913, Pg. 10. 

[5] “Boys Arrested, Charged with Theft in City Market. The Daily Telegraph. 14 November 1913, Pg. 10. 

[6] “Gets 12 Months.” The Evening Times-Globe. 10 November 1983. Pg. 22. 

[7] “Thieves rob, destroy ATM.” Telegraph Journal. 22 May 2002. Pg. 2. 

[8] “Merchants say City Market becoming shoplifters’ haven.” Telegraph Journal. 24 May 2002. Pg. 4. 

[9] “Thieves run off with charity money at City Market.” Telegraph Journal. 17 September 2014. Pg. B1. 

Photo: Shoppers in the City Market, 1980s (PANB P225-11946)