Formerly known as Depot Street, a business district developed near the depot after the first train passed through Clinton in 1869. Market Street boomed in the 1880’s, welcoming travelers and citizens alike with its variety of stores, taverns, hotels, and theaters. In the earliest years, sawmills, zinc works, and the pearling industry thrived here as well. There were two devastating fires, one in 1905 and a larger one in 1908 that destroyed the majority of the buildings on the street that were not brick. After the second fire, the city of Clinton passed an ordinance outlawing wooden buildings. The lowest area of the street, known as The Flats, was underwater during the flood of 1929.