Earliest meeting: Monday 5th August 1782
Final meeting: Saturday 23rd July 1785
Uppark House is a 17th century house in South Harting near Petersfield in West Sussex. It was built in 1690 and sold to Sir Matthew Featherstonhaugh in 1747. Sir Matthew later had one son who became Sir Harry Featherstonhaugh. The first meeting to take place in the grounds of Uppark was on Monday 5th August 1782 when the Uppark Sweepstakes was won by Sir H Fetherstonhaugh’s Rockingham defeating Antiquity. A second day of racing took place on Thursday 8th August 1782, but it was a further 3 years before the next reference to racing in the grounds of the estate. That two day meeting was staged from Friday 22nd to Saturday 23rd July 1785 when the Uppark Cup over 2 miles was launched. It was contested by some very prominent owners, with the Prince of Wales’ Nottingham pipped at the post by Epaminondas owned by Sir Harry Featherstonhaugh.
Prince of Wales, Sir H Fetherston, Colonel Tarleton
Uppark Cup, Uppark Sweepstake
Monday 5th & Thursday 8th August 1782
Uppark Sweepstake over a mile and a quarter
1. Rockingham owned by Sir H Fetherston
2. Antuquity owned by Colonel Tarleton
3. Conundrum owned by Mr Monson
22nd – 23rd July 1785
Uppark Cup over 2 miles
1 Epaminondas owned by Sir H Featherston
2 Nottingham owned by the Prince of Wales
3 Racer owned by Lord Grosvenor
John Cary (1754-1835) was an English cartographer who published his atlas, The New and Correct English Atlas, in 1787. In 1794 he was commissioned by the Postmaster General to survey all English roads. The map shown below is an extract from his 1794 work.
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
