Earliest meeting: Friday 8th April 1853
Final meeting: Saturday 11th April 1914
Although the Dumfries Racecourse held its final meeting on Wednesday 13th October 1847, within a year hunters and hounds were introduced into the area by Joe Graham. Some 5 years later the first race meeting organised by the Dumfriesshire Hunt Committee took place at Leafield on Friday 8th April 1853 and remained there until 1856. The next venue was Dalton from 1856 to 1859. It transferred initially to nearby Lockerbie on 20th April 1860 and remained there until 1875, later transferring its interest to Collin from 1875 to 1895 and on to Carnsalloch from 1895 to 1899. As a consequence of the Boer War there was no meeting organised in 1900 and the meeting finally rested at Justinlees from 1901 until racing ceased in 1914. At that final meeting at Justinlees, just outside of Annan, a large crowd witnessed the largest entry ever for a Dumfriesshire Hunt meeting and enjoyed seeing Mr J Johnstone ride a treble. The feature race was the United Hunt Cup which was won by Mr A J Ferguson’s Lady Hackler, and the crowd went home happy, not realising that the First World War would spell the end of racing under rules for the Hunt Group. |
| This racecourse is covered in Volume 3 of Racecourses Here Today and Gone Tomorrow. Ordering details shown below. |
| Local Patrons |
Marquis of Queensberry, Sir Robert Buchanan Jardine, Joe Graham, Captain David Johnstone |
| Principal Races |
Dumfriesshire Hunt Cup, Dumfries Burgh Chase, The Silver Snuff-Box, The Silver Jug, Border Hunt Chase |
Although races were certainly contested in Dumfries in 1662, it is the period between 1700 and 1847 that we have the most detailed information about Dumfries Races.
1728 A 4-day meeting was staged on what was referred to as the ordinary course, clearly a well-established course on Tinwald Downs, between Tuesday 1st October and Friday 4th October 1728.
1737 A 20 Guineas Subscription Purse for Hunters was run on the usual course.
1788 A 4-day meeting took place on Tinwald Downs between Tuesday 21st October 1788 and Friday 24th October 1788. On the first day the main event was for 100 Guineas and saw Mr Baird's Sir Falstaff defeat Lord Eglington's Count Caolbro. At the end of that racing week a 50 Guineas Purse had the following result:-
1. RATTLER owned by Mr Baird of Newbyth 1 2 1
2. SIR ANDREW owned by Mr Hamilton of Wishaw 2 1 2
3. THOROUGH owned by Duke of Hamilton 3 3 3
1789-1814 Race meetings were held annually on the old Tinwald Downs Course
1815-1844 A new one mile flat round course was established on Tinwald Downs.
1845-1847 For a 3-year period races were held on what was described as a new course on Tinwald Downs. This would be at least the third course on the Downs.
1848 As a consequence of the Dumfries Handicap not filling, no races were organized this year, and in the event Wednesday 13th October 1847 proved to be the last year of Flat races held at Dumfries on Tinwald Downs.
It was a further 5 years before races returned to the Dumfries area, albeit in the form of hunting meetings, steeplechase meetings and, eventually, point-to-point meetings. Whilst there is little doubt that Tinwald Downs had been the site of established racecourses, the Dumfriesshire Hunt meetings were nomadic. It is certain that the meetings held near Lockerbie were on an established course, other meetings were staged on courses which were just used for a single year, although the courses at Collin and Carnsalloch appeared to be more settled.
1853-1859 On Friday 26th May 1858 a typical meeting for this 7 year period was held at Leafields on a one mile round course containing 6 strong fences on land owned by W F Carruthers. For one of these years the meeting was held at Dalton.
1860-1885 In April 1860 the Dumfries meeting was switched to a course 2 miles from Lockerbie beside the farmhouse of Muirhouse End. On some years during this period the meeting moved nearer to Collin, and even as late as Tuesday 2nd April 1901 the meeting was staged near Lockerbie. However, the meeting held on Tuesday 31st March 1885 appears to have been the last meeting to be held at Lockerbie for some considerable time, after which the meeting became nomadic, as detailed below.
1886-1888 Meetings were staged in the neighbourhood of Collin, 3 miles from Dumfries, over a 4-mile course between Dinwoodie Lodge and Muirhousehead. The first such meeting took place on Tuesday 20th April 1886 and the last, during this short period, on Tuesday 17th April 1888.
1889 This year the meeting took place on Monday 25th March 1889 at Ecclefechan, in the parish of Hoddom, on a 3-mile course managed by Mr Salkeld and Mr T A Lyon, stretching from Brown Moor to Barrhill
1890 The meeting this year was held at Kirtlebridge on Saturday 15th March 1890
1891 The March meeting this year was staged on Tuesday 17th March 1891 at Stapleton on James Mitchell's Nutberry Farm.
1892 The meeting returned to Collin on Saturday 9th April 1892
1893 The meeting was held on Saturday 18th March 1893 on a 3 mile course at Parkend Road End on the Lochmaben and Dalton Road
1894 This is the first record of a meeting taking place at a more established course at Riggfoot, Carnsalloch on Saturday 24th March 1894
1895 The meeting continued at Riggfoot on Saturday 13th April 1895
1896 This year the meeting, held on Tuesday 17th March 1896, was held in Middlebie parish, starting at Waterbeck
1897-1898 For two consecutive years the meeting returned to the Riggfoot course, Carnsalloch, some 4 miles from Dumfries. The meetings were held on Friday 16th April 1897 and Saturday 9th April 1898
1899 This year the meeting was staged on Saturday 1st April 1899 at Hoddom on the estate of Mr Brook.
1900-1914 Apart from the aforementioned 1901 meeting at Lockerbie, the meeting was regularly staged at Justinlees. |
Tuesday 20th April 1886
Dumfriesshire Hunt Cup over 3 miles
1. Golden Fleece, aged horse owned by Mr W B Jardine
2. Lina,aged mare owned by Mr A J Johnstone
3. Ned, aged horse owned by Mr F Joynson
Betting: 1/3 Golden Fleece, 4/1 Lina, 8/1 Ned |
| The final meeting took place on Saturday 11th April 1914. |
Whilst there was a single meeting held on Tuesday 1st April 1924, the area still to this day holds successful point to point meetings at Lockerbie. |
| Course today |
At a range of venues from Leafield, Lockerbie, Collin and Carnsalloch to Justinlees. |
| If you have photos, postcards, racecards. badges, newspaper cuttings or book references about the old course, or can provide a photo of how the ground on which the old racecourse stood looks today, then email johnwslusar@gmail.com |
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:-
London Illustrated News
Racing Illustrated 1895-1899
The Sporting & Dramatic Illustrated
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 |
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ISBN 978-0-9957632-0-3
652 pages
774 former courses |
ISBN 978-0-9957632-1-0
352 pages
400 former courses |
ISBN 978-0-9957632-2-7
180 pages
140 former courses |
ISBN 978-0-9957632-3-4
264 pages
235 former courses |
| Copies of the above books are only available by emailing johnwslusar@gmail.com stating your requirements, method of payment (cheque payable to W.Slusar) or Bank transfer, and the address where the book(s) should be sent. |
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