Earliest meeting: Saturday 1st May 1869
Final meeting: Friday 1st May 1891
Edenbridge is in the Sevenoaks district of Kent and lies on the River Eden, a tributary of the River Medway. It was ideally located on the old Roman Road running from London to Lewes. It held its own races, organised by the United Hunt Group, for a prolonged period of time in the middle to late 1800s, with the inaugural meeting taking place on Saturday 1st May 1869. The newspapers summed up the experience of racing at Edenbridge by commenting ‘The pretty little town of Edenbridge, the leading characteristic of the inhabitants of which appears to be an intense love of the sport of steeplechasing’, and at the meeting on Friday 4th May 1883 they certainly had a day to enjoy. The card opened with the United Hunt Cup in which Mr Hatfield’s Dover beat Alured and Twinkle, while the Red Coat Steeplechase which followed was won by Mr Mosse Robinson’s Chameleon. The concluding Open Hunters Stakes was won by Ballot Box for Mr Nickalls. The penultimate meeting took place on Thursday 1st May 1890 when the Farmer’s Race was won by Mr Stanford’s Rowlands, while the United Service Plate went to Colonel Gough’s Hard Times. The meetings were popular and well supported, running annually for 22 years until a final meeting was staged on Friday 1st May 1891. After this date the races moved on to Lingfield. |
| This racecourse is covered in Volume 2 of Racecourses Here Today and Gone Tomorrow. Ordering details shown below. |
| Local Patrons |
Marquis of Abergavenny, Lord Henry Nevill, Lord George Pratt |
| Principal Races |
United Hunt Cup, Red Coat Steeplechase |
Thursday 1st May 1890
United Hunt Cup over 3 miles
1. Marvel, aged horse owned by Mr H Leney
2. Birling, aged horse owned by Mr F Gregory
3. Chit Chat, aged horse owned by Mr Hudson
Betting: 5/4 Captain, 7/4 Birling, 5/1 Chit Chat, 10/1 Marvel |
The final meeting took place on Friday 1st May 1891. |
| Course today |
At Skeynes Farm, Edenbridge. |
| 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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