To the best of our knowledge, the only mention of Trnovo, now part of Ilirska Bistrica, as a market town is contained in the rent-roll of the local parish from 1713. The article examines the background of what for now appears to be the sole reference to the status of the settlement. The central question is: How long and on what basis was the place, which otherwise served as the parish seat, considered a market town? The comparison to other late-documented market towns in Slovenian territory excludes the possibility that the title of market town had deeper roots, reaching as far back as the Middle Ages. There is every indication that the perception of Trnovo as a market town was influenced by several factors, including the very important provincial estates’ tollhouse. The market town was also associated with the nominal office of (market-town) judge, combined with that of village head for Bistrica and Trnovo. The title of market town was most probably gradually introduced in the seventeenth century, and it very likely never attained wider recognition and visibility.