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Original Text (Annotation: epw045403 / 548829)
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The London Fruit Exchange at Spitalfields Market, opened 30 October 1929. Built for the wholesale auctioning, showing and distribution of mainly imported fruit, it was located here by the City Corporation who acquired Spitalfields Market from its private owner in 1920. During World War Two, the basement of the Exchange became a Stepney Borough public air-raid shelter, familiarly known after its organiser, Mickey Davies, as "Mickey's Shelter". Visitors to this famous shelter, London's largest under ground public air raid shelter, included Clementine Churchill and Wendell Willkie from America. In 1963 the Wool Exchange was moved into the building by the Corporation. Currently, there is a controversial plan to demolish the London Fruit and Wool Exchange. '