Earliest meeting: August 1690
Final meeting: Saturday 20th May 1939
Early records show that racing was taking place in the Shropshire town of Bridgnorth by 1690 with the support of the Corporation. The course was situated near to Stourbridge Road and Green Lane on Morfe Common. Cheny’s Horse-matches Calendar reported on the meeting held in August 1728 and Baily’s Racing Register first provided detailed results from races held at Bridgnorth in June 1732, when the racing fanatic, Mr Williams Wynne who lived in Shropshire, won the Selling Purse with Spot. In 1812 Morfe Common was enclosed and after the 1811 meeting the races moved from Morfe Common to Innage (Racecourse Farm, Tasley), where they remained until 1830. From Innage the races transferred to a new course at Tasley where they remained, but for a brief lapse, until the final flat meeting on the old course took place on 15th October 1873. An early steeplechase meeting was held at Tasley in 1866 and continued under various guises until the middle of the 20th century. In the early 1900s meetings were billed as Bridgnorth and Wheatland Hunt but changed back to Bridgnorth in 1904. The Bridgnorth meeting continued until the final meeting on Saturday 20th May 1939.
Lord Molyneux, Sir G Pigot, Admiral Pigot, Sir H Harpur, Mr Williams WynnW W Whitmore, Thomas Whitmore
Friday 13th June 1732
Bridgnorth 40 Guineas Selling Purse
1. Spot owned by Mr Williams Wynn
2. Forrester owned by Lord Molyneux
3. Traveller owned by Mr Neale
4. Bat owned by Mr Lechmere
16th to 18th June 1762
Bridgnorth 2 mile Purse
1. Spanker owned by Mr Pengree
2. Madge owned by Mr Basset
3. Newcomb owned by Mr Aldridge
Wednesday 26th and Thursday 27th June 1782
Bridgnorth Thomas Whitmore Stakes over 4 miles
1. Unnamed horse by Juniper owned by Sir H Harpur
2. Rodney owned by Mr Miles Thistlewaite
3. Young Davy owned by Mr B Lloyd
Admiral Pigot Stakes over 4 miles
1. Xenophon owned by Mr Westwood
2. Slender owned by Tombs
3. Hamlet owned by Mr Langder
Wednesday 18th June 1800
Bridgnorth Maiden Plate over 4 miles
1. Robin Red-Breast owned by Mr Lockley
2. Raginer owned by Mr C Day
3. Prospect owned by Mr Carr
Bridgnorth Sweepstakes over 2 miles
1. Alfred owned by Lord Stamford
2. Kill Devil owned by Mr Heming
Bridgnorth Hunters Sweepstakes over 4 miles
1. Robin Hood owned by Mr Bailey
2. Natty owned by Mr Lockley
Thursday 22nd July & Friday 23rd July 1824
Bridgnorth 10 Guineas Sweepstake over 2 miles
1. Sarsaparilla owned by Mr Painter
2. Miss Robson owned by Sir G Pigot
Bridgnorth 50 pound race over 4 miles sponsored by W W Whitmore
1. Libertine owned by Mr Geary
2. Little Driver owned by Mr Bowman
3. Clansman owned by Mr Lord
Bridgnorth Hunters’ Sweepstake over 2 miles
1. Sylvanus owned by Mr T Pickernell walked over
James Whyte’s History of the British Turf notes that racing first took place at the Shropshire town of Bridgnorth in 1690. The two day meeting takes place at the start of August and in August 1839 the races were:-
The Patshull Stakes;
Bridgnorth Gold Cup;
Bridgnorth Members Plate
From Innage the races transferred to a new course at Tasley where they remained, but for a brief lapse, until the final meeting on the old course took place on 15th October 1873. The Bridgnorth meeting continued until the final meeting on Saturday 20th May 1939.
I am grateful to Ron Summers for the map shown below which is from the Apley Estate in Shrewsbury Archives.
Initially on Morfe Common, then Racecourse Farm, Innage and finally at Tasley. Today there is little evidence of the racecourse, although a housing estate near Church Road and Wenlock Road is named Racecourse Drive.
Much of the information about this course has been found using internet research and is in the public domain. However, useful research sources have been:-
Northern Turf History Volumes 1-4 by J.Fairfax-Blakeborough
The Sporting Magazine
A Long Time Gone by Chris Pitt first published in 1996 ISBN 0 900599 89 8
Racing Calendars which were first published in 1727
