Earliest meeting: Tuesday 6th September 1921
Final meeting: Thursday 15th May 1924
The city of Waterford lies in the province of Munster, located in the County of Wexford, in the south-east of Ireland. It is the oldest, and fifth most populous city of Ireland made famous by Waterford Crystal. Racing first took place in the vicinity of Waterford at Tramore in 1785, while the present-day Waterford and Tramore races were first staged in 1924. However, a separate City of Waterford racecourse was at Kilcohan Park, holding races for a 4-year period between 1921 and 1924. The inaugural meeting took place on Tuesday 6th September 1921 at Kilcohan Park, a splendidly laid out track, conveniently situated about a mile from Waterford City centre. The new venture had the support of the Great Southern Railway Company who operated a train service for the convenience of the Metropolitan contingent, leaving at 9am on Tuesday, and returning at the end of the second day on Wednesday. Given the excellent stakes on offer, owners supported the venture whole-heartedly, especially the principal race, the Waterford Steeplechase. This was well-viewed by ante-post enthusiasts, with a wide range of horses supported. All fomer Waterford racescourses and the present day Waterford & Tramore racecourse are covered separately.
The venture had many similarities to the one undertaken at Bournemouth Racecourse between 1925 and 1928 when a large investment was made to offer huge prize money and top-class racing. The similarities do not end there, for in the second-year prize money had to be reduced, and each venture ran out of steam after 4 years, both racecourses closing without trace. At the first City of Waterford meeting on Tuesday 6th September 1921 winners prize money totalled 1000 sovereigns, equivalent to £50,000 in 2020. Results from that opening day are shown below:-
Tuesday 6th September 1921
Johnstown Handicap Hurdle (100 sovs) over 2 miles
1. FANE LADY 100/8 owned by Mr L Goodman and ridden by J Gorman
2. BANBA 5/1 owned by Mr J H Carr and ridden by J Hogan jnr
3. MELANGE 2/1 owned by Mr W Watson and ridden by C Aylin
Suir Plate (100 sovs) over 1 mile
1. LEMVOYA 2/1 jt fav owned by Captain H Musker and ridden by E M Quirke
2. GOSSIP SHOP 2/1 jt fav owned by Mr W Desmond and ridden by Joe Dines
3. GEORGE EDGAR 5/1 owned by Mr John Kelly and ridden by James Doyle
Waterford Handicap Steeplechase (500 sovs) over 2 1/2 miles
1. HAWKER 10/1 owned by Mr T B Bennett and ridden by C Aylin
2. AEGEAN 100/8 owned by Mr F L Lloyd and ridden by D Colbert
3. FLEECY WAVE 20/1 owned by Mr W G Mulcahy and ridden by E Lawn
Newpark Plate (100 sovs) over 2 miles
1. FAST ASLEEP 2/1 jt fav owned by Mr R Wallace and ridden by J H Wallace
2. ICOLES 4/1 owned by Mr J S Graham and ridden by E M Quirke
3. CARRIGROCHE 20/1 owned by Mrs de Sales la Terriere and ridden by Isaac Morgan
Ballyglan Handicap (100 sovs) over 6 furlongs
1. FREE RETURN 6/4 fav owned by Mrs Morgan and ridden by Joe Dines
2. BATTINA 6/1 owned by Mr H Lacy and ridden by Joe Harty
3. RAHEENDUFF 7/1 owned by Mr M O'Mare and ridden by D Quirke
Woodlands Steeplechase (100 sovs) over 3 miles
1. SIR HUGH 1/10 fav owned by Mr F Harbour and ridden by C Aylin
2. ARDMORE 100/6 owned by Mr J Arnold and ridden by Isaac Morgan
3. THE PROSPEROUS BOY 100/6 owned by Mr J A O'Sullivan and ridden by C Harty
The photo above is shown courtesy of The Taler (Wednesday 21st September 1921) and shows Major Bollan and Miss Wyndham-Quin (daughter of the Earl of Dunraven) at the opening day of the City of Waterford races.
In total there were 21 days of racing at the City of Waterford racecourse at Kilcohan Park
Tuesday 6th & Wednesday 7th September 1921
Tuesday 1st November 1921
Thursday 1st December 1921
Thursday 5th January 1922
Thursday 23rd February 1922
Tuesday 16th & Wednesday 17th May 1922
Monday 26th & Tuesday 27th June 1922
Tuesday 15th & Wednesday 16th May 1923
Monday 16th & Tuesday 17th July 1923
Friday 14th and Saturday 15th September 1923
Thursday 1st November 1923
Thursday 24th January 1924
Thursday 6th March 1924
Wednesday 14 & Thursday 15th May 1924
On 1st January 1922 Annual Members badges were issued to cover a planned for 12 days of racing throughout the year. A Gents badge cost £8, a Gents & Ladies badge cost £9, a Gents and 2 Ladies badges cost £10. In the end, because National Troops battled with Irregulars in the summer of 1922, the full programme of 12 meetings was not completed. Furthermore, National Troops were still involved in skirmishes in the early months of 1923.
In addition to the usual 6 raced mixed programme of Flat, Steeplechase and Hurdle races, in May 1924 a Farmers Cup was added, with special rules introduced which excluded point-to-point victories from calculations which affected handicapping. At the same time in the UK similar rule changes were considered, with many races run as Bona-Fide meetings to take advantage of the rule changes.
Thursday 15th May 1924
City of Waterford Hurdle (50 sovs) over 2 1/2 miles
1. KILDA'S PRIDE 4/1 owned by Mr Gorey and ridden by Joe Delaney
2. GRAYSLAND 8/1 owned by Mr Prendergast and ridden by M Doherty
3. NOVELTY 2/5 fav owned by Mr Whelan and ridden by P Cullen
Kilcohan Hurdle (50 sovs) over 1 1/2 miles
1. HOMELAND 2/1 owned by Mrs Moloney and ridden by J Meany
2. SNOW LOUGH 6/4 fav owned by Mr J Manning and ridden by J Moylan
3. MADE UP 100/8 owned by Mr W Watson and ridden by P Cullen
Farmers Cup (25 sovs) over 2 1/2 miles
1. WILD WAVE 4/6 fav owned by Mr Crotty and ridden by Joe Walsh
2. AWAKEN'S LAST 6/1 owned by Mr M Curran and ridden by S Regan
3. RED ABBEY 10/1 owned by Mr J O'Keeffe and ridden by R O'Keeffe
Knockeen Plate (50 sovs) over 1 1/2 miles
1. SPANISH ROSE 5/4 fav owned by Mr O'Brien and ridden by W Redmond
2. NABACLEIS 6/1 owned by Mr T Nunan and ridden by J Moylan
3. FAST ASLEEP 6/4 owned by Mr Wallace and ridden by P Galvin
Director's Plate (50 sovs) over 1 1/2 miles
1. DOCTOR'S CALL 10/1 owned by Mr Power and ridden by J Moylan
2. RATHBAR evens fav owned by Mr Quain and ridden by J H Harty
3. HOMELAND 6/1 owned by Mrs Moleney and ridden by J Meany
Ballytruckle Steeplechase (50 sovs) over 3 miles
1. ADA evens fav owned by Mr A Knowles and ridden by A Knowles
2. MAIDSTOWN 5/4 owned by Mr Connolly and ridden by J Meany
3. KING'S PARDON 6/1 owned by Mrs Harty and ridden by J H Harty
Faithlegg Steeplechase over 2 miles
1. KORSUKAN 1/2 fav owned by Mr Widger and ridden by M Connors
2. BELLE FIELD 6/4 owned by Mr Wallace and ridden by M Wallace
Between 6th September 1921 and Thursday 15th May 1924 there were 21 race meetings held on Kilcohan Park, but in May 1925 the City of Waterford Race Co. Ltd met at the Imperial Hotel, Waterford to consider its financial position and formally agreed to put the company into liquidation. No further City of Waterford meetings were staged, although by then the Waterford and Tramore races had been in place since 1924. In due course Kilcohan Park was transformed into a football pitch which was used from 1930 onwards by Waterford Football Club who staged their first match at their new stadium on 2nd November 1930. Unlicensed greyhound meetings were also held at the stadium, although in 1947 Mr J Mulhall, president of the Irish Coursing Club, had negotiated for greyhound racing to be held under ICC rules, the inaugural meeting being staged in May 1947.
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
