Earliest meeting: Friday 24th September 1734
Final meeting: Wednesday 4th October 1876
Baily’s Racing Register recorded a three day meeting taking place at the Gloucestershire county town of Gloucester, starting on Friday 24th September 1734. The course, an oblong of about a mile and a half around, with a straight run in of 2 furlongs, was laid out in a meadow near the River Severn. The meeting opened with a £50 Purse which went to White Stockings for Mr Major, beating Lord Portmore’s Mouse and Lord Weymouth’s Whittington. Later in the week the £30 Purse was won by the Duke of Ancaster’s Crab. Races continued to be staged on a regular basis and the two day meeting on Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th September 1833 proved to be beneficial for Mr I Day. His colt Little Boy Blue was runner-up in the Gloucester Stakes before getting his head in front in the Berkeley Stakes over 2 miles, while his gelding Liston captured the Beaufort Stakes to crown a good meeting. Racing lapsed after the 1842 meeting and was not re-introduced until October 1861 when the Badminton Stakes went to Violet, while the Gloucestershire Handicap, over a mile, saw Mr T Bell’s Gleam beat Lord Coventry’s Flitch. The final meeting took place on Wednesday 4th October 1876. |
| This racecourse is covered in Volume 2 of Racecourses Here Today and Gone Tomorrow. Ordering details shown below. |
| Local Patrons |
Duke of Ancaster, Lord Portmore, Lord Weymouth, Sir A Hasilrigg, Captain Berkeley |
| Principal Races |
Gloucester Stakes, Berkeley Stakes, Welter Stakes, Beaufort Stakes |
Friday 24th to Sunday 26th September 1734 |
Gloucester £50 Purse
1. Whitestockings owned by Mr Major
2. Mouse owned by Lord Portmore
3. Whittington owned by Lord Weymouth
Gloucester £30 Purse
1. Crab owned by The Duke of Ancaster
2. Ringtail owned by Sir A Hasilrigg
3. Dunkirk owned by Lord Portmore |
I am grateful to Mike Payne for providing additional details about Gloucester Races.
As stated above, the first meeting of the Gloucester Races was in September 1734, held on one of the hams or water meadows bordering the River Severn near Gloucester. The racecourse was not permanent being laid out just prior to the event after the ground had been grazed or the grass cropped. The site moved over time but the press reports did not always specify the location. In 1793 the meet was definitely held on Sudmeadow on Tuesday 10th September when the principal race was the £50 City Members Purse, while on Friday 13th September the meeting continued with the £50 All-Age Subscription Purse. Entries had to be made at the Swan Inn the day before, and the Chief Steward was Lord Ducie, with William Clifford serving as Clerk of the Course. |
There appears to be a hiatus of about 30 years, but in 1825 a group of racing enthusiasts met to discuss reintroducing racing to the City. They were led by Colonel Berkely, who subscribed 25 Guineas to indicate how eager he was to ensure the event happened, and he was ably supported by Colonel Webb and Mr Canning. It took 2 years, but the next meeting was in 1827, although it's venue was not reported. |
Wednesday 18th to Thursday 19th September 1833 |
Gloucester Stakes over 2 miles
1. Harry owned by Mr Thornes
2. Little Boy Blue owned by Mr I Day
3. Changeling owned by Mr Peel
The Berkeley Stakes over 2 miles
1. Little Boy Blue owned by Mr I Day
2. Sinbad owned by Mr Crommelin
The Beaufort Stakes over a mile
1. Liston owned by Mr I Day
2. Trouville owned by Mr Thompson
3. Uncle Toby owned by Mr Peel |
Tuesday 21st & Wednesday 22nd July 1835 |
The Gloucester Stakes over 2 miles
1. Paris owned by Captain Berkeley
2. Carnaby owned by Mr S Herbert
The Berkeley Stakes over 1 ½ miles
1. Gab owned by Mr I Day
2. Haldon owned by Mr Whalley
3. Worcester owned by Mr Thorne
The Welter Stakes over a mile
1. Challenger owned by Mr Hobson
2. Cyclops owned by Mr Ody
3. Changeling owned by Mr H Peel |
By August 1838 the meeting was held in St Catherine meadow and there was a warning in the press against trespassing on the land prior to the hay being removed. Joseph Page was known to own the freehold of part of Mean Ham (which included St Catherine Meadow) and be tenant of the rest.
Tuesday 14th & Wednesday 15th August 1838
Gloucester 20 Sovereigns Stakes over 2 miles
1. KING COLE, 5-y-old owned by Mr Baker and ridden by Marlow
2. OBERON, aged horse owned by Mr Isaac Day
3. THEOPHILUS, aged horse owned by Mr Tomes
Beaufort 30 Sovereigns Stakes over 2 miles
1. LUGWARDINE, 4-year-old owned by Mr Griffiths
2. ZETHUS, aged horse owned by Mr Isaac Day
3. ELIZA, 3-year-old filly owned by Mr Tomes |
James Whyte’s History of the British Turf notes that Gloucester racecourse is situated in a meadow on the banks of the River Severn and records the 1839 races as two small Stakes races on just one day, having in previous years extended over 3 days. |
The meeting the following year was on Tuesday 10th September 1839 and, according to Bell's Life and Sporting Chronicle, 'afforded considerable sport to a numerous assemblage of persons.' Soon afterwards, although the races continued to be known as the County of Gloucester Races, they moved to Cleeve Hill, Cheltenham, and were staged each year up to 1845. |
It appears that there was then another break in proceedings until 1860 when the event was resurrected on Maisemore Ham, which is on the other side of the northern branch of the Severn from Maisemore Park, the later home of the Point-to-Pont course. For most of its latter years, from 1861 onwards, Gloucester racecourse was on St Catherine Meadow, which more or less equates to the modern-day St Oswald's retail park. It remained at St Catherine Meadows until its last appearance in 1876. It was to be a long time before Gloucester witnessed racing in the City, courtesy of the Ledbury Hunt. The Ledbury Hunt, formerly held races at Bushley Park, and then Upleadon, before coming to Maisemore Park in 1982, and have been held there ever since. The event is now marketed as Gloucester Races. |
| The final meeting took place on Wednesday 4th October 1876 |
| Course today |
I am grateful to Evan Lewis for his comments on the course; The old "Gloucester racecourse" was at one time located on Maisemore Ham, but away from where the Maisemore point to point course is located now. The course description is very much like the current point - point course (but substitute "oval" for "oblong"). The report of the meeting said it was a massive crowd and that the course was superior to Cheltenham. |
| 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 |
