Earliest meeting: Tuesday 7th September 1714
Final meeting: Monday 13th April 1874
The earliest record of a race meeting in the vicinity of the Worcestershire town of Stourbridge was from the London Gazette 1st – 10th August 1714 when it advertised a two day meeting to be held on ‘Stowerbridge (sic) Heath’ on Tuesday 7th and Wednesday 8th September, with a 20 Guineas Plate on the first day and a Galloway Plate of £10 on the second day. Whilst meetings almost certainly were held intermittently throughout the next 100 years, the next record was a 2 day meeting on Monday 28th and Tuesday 29th October 1822 when the opening Sweepstake went to Mr Painter’s The Main, while the Town Plate was won by Mr F L Charlton’s Plumper at the expense of Ynysymaengwyn. The racecourse was a tight, oval course of under a mile with many challenging inclines, which began with a downhill 2 furlongs followed by a 2 furlong flat section, with a hill for a furlong, and finishing with a 2 furlong flat run-in. At the 2 day meeting on Tuesday 5th and Wednesday 6th October 1824 the opening Hunters Stakes, over a demanding 3 miles, was won by Sir T Winnington’s Woodman mare, beating Mr Webb’s Hebe. Mr Webb gained his revenge in the Worcestershire Stakes with Tipple Cider, while Lord Anson won the Town Plate with The Patriarch’s brother. Races continued on a very regular basis for the next half century until a final meeting took place on Monday 13th April 1874 at Wassel Grove.
Lord Anson, Lord Foley, Sir T Winnington, Sir W W Wynne
Tuesday 5th October to Wednesday 6th October 1824
Stourbridge Hunters Stakes over 3 miles
1. Unnamed mare by Woodman owned by Sir T Winnington
2. Hebe owned by Mr Webb
Stourbridge Town Plate over 2 miles
1. Unnamed brother to The Patriarch owned by Lord Anson
2. Libertine owned by Mr Beardsworth
3. Tipple Cider owned by Mr Webb
The Worcestershire Stakes over 2 miles
1. Tipple Cider owned by Mr Webb
Macaroni Stakes over 2 miles
1. Lottery owned by Mr Bradley
2. Alfred owned by Mr Tongue
3. Kate owned by Mr Webb
I am grateful to Ordnance Survey (© Crown Copyright) for permission to use the 1888 map shown below, and to Colin Wharton who drew attention to it:-
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
