Marché aux puces de Saint-Ouen

This guide to the Marche aux puces de Saint-Ouen in Paris starts before dawn a century and a half ago, following a ragpicker sifting through gutters and rubbish on the muddy edge of the city. It traces how Baron Haussmann's rebuilding of Paris pushed these scavengers out to Saint-Ouen, and how an 1883 order to seal household trash in metal bins nearly ended their trade. The guide also follows a prefect named Eugene Poubelle, whose name still means dustbin in French today. Wander the covered alleys slowly; the market still spreads across seven hectares of stalls.