The South Australia town of Gawler boasts a population of about 27,000 and is located 42 kilometres north of the city of Adelaide. It is on the border of the Barossa Valley which is world famous for its wines. The town is named after George Gawler who was the second Vice-Regal representative of Britain in the early years of the 19th century. The town has staged racing since 1849 when the racecourse was in the south of the township and, unlike today’s courses, was straight and the horses had to race down the straight, turn at a marker post and run back down the straight to the winning post situated near to the starting post.
Racing is administered by the Gawler and Barossa Jockey Club, its headquarters being one of the first sights of the town. After the early meetings the races were so successful that in 1856 they were known as Gawler Town Races and the programme was extended to 3 days in March. By 1866 the meeting was relocated to Willaston, the two day meeting being held on land occupied by the Willaston Hotel. Then in 1874 the meeting was transferred once again to land owned by Hon. H Duffield close to the railway station where there was no need for a grandstand because the crowd could see the entire race from the surrounding hill. That meeting took place on Easter Monday 6th April 1874, the Gawler Mechanics band entertaining the crowd throughout the meeting, when the principal race, the Gawler Handicap worth 40 sovereigns was won by Sunbeam. The full result of the forerunner to the Gawler Cup is shown below:-
Easter Monday 6th April 1874
Gawler Handicap of 40 sovereigns over 1 ½ miles
1. Sunbeam owned by Mr J J Swinden and ridden by Jenkins
2. Dauphin owned by Mr S Bradley and ridden by Nunn
3. Maritana owned by Mr C Mullins and ridden by McMann
In the early 1880s the racecourse was moved yet again, when the Gawler Jockey Club held its first meeting on Thursday 15th April 1880 on grounds owned by Hon H (Walter) Duffield at Para Para to the west of Gawler. By now the principal race was the Gawler Cup over 1 ½ miles worth 125 sovereigns which was won by Buccaneer.
Thursday 15th April 1880
Gawler Cup (125 sovereigns) over 1 ½ miles
1. Buccaneer owned by Mr Ross T Reid
2. Don Carlos owned by Mr T Jordan
3. Sir Charles owned by Mr C L McDonald
Although the Jockey Club had been operational since 1874, an administration meeting on 23rd January 1879 formalised the Club and they organised a meeting on 15th April 1879, although it continued to take place at Para Para owned by Hon H Walter Duffield. At this stage the Gawler Jockey Club consisted of 96 members and they had raised £400 in subscriptions. Within a year the meeting ceased because of the poor health of Walter Duffield and the profit of £48 was held over until the current Gawler and Barossa Jockey Club was founded on 12th March 1891. In that year the meeting was staged on leased ground at Evanston on 6th June 1891 when the Gawler Cup was won by the 6/4 favourite Maelstrom, owned by Mr Miller and Mr Nicholas and ridden by Patterson. It was to be a decade later before Evanston racecourse was bought for £1500 and shortly afterwards the racecourse was realigned to enable races to be run anti-clockwise, although they had originally been run in a clockwise direction.
1891 The Gawler Cup was won by Maelstrom (6/4 fav) owned by Mr Miller and Mr Nicholas and ridden by Patterson
1892 The Gawler Cup over 1 ¼ miles was won by Precipice (2/1 fav) ridden by M Quinn, who defeated Duke and Little Dudley
1893 The Gawler Cup over 1 ¼ miles was won by Corio (5/2) ridden by Hodgkins who defeated St George and Precipice
1894 The Gawler Cup was won by Kirkby (60 sovereigns) owned by Mr J A Anderson and ridden by Jacques
1895 The Gawler Cup was won by Happy Jack (70 sovereigns) owned by Mr J O’Connor
1896 The Gawler Cup was won by Principle owned by Mr James
1897 The Gawler Cup was won by UZ (100 sovereigns) owned by Mr W F Stock and ridden by C Walker
1898 The Gawler Cup was won by Alveary who defeated Birksgate and Viking
1899 The Gawler Cup over 1 ¼ miles was won by Thelma ridden by McEnhill, defeating Dearix and Burnside
Gawler Racecourse was a popular, well supported racecourse in the early years of the 20th century. Although it raced for 6 days annually, the highlight of their racing year was the Gawler Cup over 1 ½ miles. The Gawler Trotting Cup was held in the middle years of the century.
1900 The Gawler Cup was won by Fair Sex owned by Mr D MacFarlane, trained by Charles Quinn and ridden by J Giblin
1901 The Gawler Cup was won by Light Joy owned by Mr T S Ryder, trained by Charles Quinn and ridden by William Rosenthal
1902 The Gawler Cup was won by Man of Honour owned by Mr E B McKeon and ridden by Bob Trewartha
1903 The Gawler Cup was won by Corizann owned by Mr William Sheppard and ridden by J Butlin
1904 The Gawler Cup was won by Sea Foam owned by Mr Harry Mort and ridden by A Pile
1905 The Gawler Cup was won by Fairyland owned by Mr R E Howie, trained by John Owens and ridden by J E O’Brien
1906 The Gawler Cup was won by Felicita owned by Mr J J Mortimer and ridden by W Lake
1907 The Gawler Cup was won by Elderslie owned by Mr C L Moorhouse, trained by Martin Whelan and ridden by A Carter
1908 The Gawler Cup was won by Metal Queen owned by Dr E E S Coombe and ridden by Charles Moore
1909 The Gawler Cup was won by Ellestene II owned by G Bax and ridden by George Bax
1910 The Gawler Cup was won by Scintillation owned by Mr George Bennet, trained by Isaiah Deid and ridden by Jack Hopwood
1911 The Gawler Cup was won by Alarm owned by Mr Ted Baker and ridden by Bob Bracegirdle
1912 The Gawler Cup was won by Sanskrit owned by Dr A H Bennett, trained by George Anderson and ridden by Willie Marshall
1913 The Gawler Cup was won by Pistol King, beating Eager and Sergius by ¾ length and ½ length
1914 The Gawler Cup was won by Playgirl owned by Mr A E Press
1915 The Gawler Cup was won by Juan Fernandez owned and trained by Tom Keily and ridden by Jack Sing
1916 The Gawler Cup was won by Azoic owned by Mr Mick Rasheed and ridden by George Dally
1917 The Gawler Cup was won by Dependence owned and trained by Tom Keily and ridden by Jack Keily
1918 The Gawler Cup was won by Plenty owned by Peter Timmens and ridden by Harry Jenkins
The photo above is shown courtesy of the Observer, Saturday 27th April 1918
1919 The Gawler Cup was won by Dependence owned and trained by Tom Keily and ridden by F Herbert
1920 The Gawler Cup was won by Early Morn owned by Mr Vincent A Zed and ridden by A H Francis
1921 The Gawler Cup was won by Lord Passe owned by Peter Timmens and ridden by G Meddick
1922 The Gawler Cup was won by Amberoid owned and trained by George Dally and ridden by W Turner
1923 The Gawler Cup was won by Anton Rain owned by Mr R and Mr G Chaffey, trained by E J Reilly and ridden by A Wilson
1924 The Gawler Cup was won by Phil Roberts owned by John Doyle and ridden by A W Geale
1925 The Gawler Cup was won by Gay Element owned by Mr John Bullock and Mr John Patterson, trained by John Patterson and ridden by R (Mick) Medhurst
1926 The Gawler Cup was won by Water Pistol owned by Mr Les Cowan and I Reid, trained by I Reid and ridden by R (Mick) Medhurst
1927 The Gawler Cup was won by Water Pistol owned by Mr Les Cowan and I Reid, trained by I Reid and ridden by R (Mick) Medhurst
1928 The Gawler Cup was won by Alfred The Great owned by Mr W J Johnson, trained by M Whelan and ridden by G Mules
The photo above is shown courtesy of The Observer Saturday 26th May 1928
1929 The Gawler Cup resulted in a dead-heat between Water Pistol and Klelafin
1930 The Gawler Cup was won by Leahiem
1931 The Gawler Cup was won by Water Pistol trained by I Reid and ridden by R Medhurst
1932 The Gawler Cup was won by Rafatol by ½ length when ridden by Johnstone
1933 The Gawler Cup was won by Rosscarbery owned by Mr W M Tidswell, trained by J F O’Dea and ridden by S Dodd
1934 The Gawler Cup was won by Greek Gift owned by Mr Jack Harvey
1935 The Gawler Cup was won by Gay Girl (3/1 fav) ridden by M Pearsall
1936 The Gawler Cup was won by Insimbi ridden by H Bastian
1937 The Gawler Cup (£100) was won by Koklani (6/4 fav) owned by Mr J E Bond and ridden by R Medhurst
1938 The Gawler Cup was won by The Riff
1939 The Gawler Cup was won by Salamar ridden by P Flattery
After the Second World War had started the races at Gawler ceased, although the Gawler Cup continued to be contested, the meetings taking place initially at Victoria Park and later at Morphettville. Evanston racecourse was required for the War effort and was used as a Military Camp.
1940 The Gawler Cup was won by Kingoonya (2/1 fav) trained by M Whelan and ridden by H Bastian
1941 The Gawler Cup was won by Lady Kidston (10/1) ridden by K Bromley
1942 Racing was banned in South Australia by the Playford Government between February 1942 and to the end of the year
1943 Racing was banned in South Australia by the Playford Government between 1st January 1943 and October 1943
1944 The Gawler Cup (£500) was won by Parida (5/1) owned by Mr D Regan
1945 The Gawler Cup (£1000) was won by Rothesay (7/1) ridden by F Badger
The Gawler and Barossa Jockey Club once again welcomed racegoers to Evanston after the War had ended.
1946 The Gawler Cup was won by Predonis owned by the Bunney Brothers
1947 The Gawler Cup was won by Walaven owned by C H Cameron and ridden by C Cameron
1948 The Gawler Cup was won by Galleon ridden by G Jamieson
1949 The Gawler Cup (£500) was won by Hatteras (4/6 fav) owned by Mr S C Brown, trained by C J Pomeroy and ridden by A Gath
1950 The Gawler Cup (£1000) was won by Double Blank (11/4) ridden by H Olsen
1951 The Gawler Cup was won by Dark Banner (9/2) owned by Mr C Thomas and ridden by Pyers
1952 The Gawler Cup was won by Blue Pride (9/1) owned by Mr S C Brown and trained by C J Pomeroy
1953 The Gawler Cup was won by Heldeux owned by Mr R G Fry and ridden by J Devereaux
1954 The Gawler Cup was won by Beau Grand trained by Ab Macdonald
Up to this point in time, although the Gawler Cup was a Flat race, the racecourse had also staged steeplechases. However, after this year the racecourse dropped steeplechase races from its programme, although they were revived later in the 1986-87 season.
Today the racecourse enjoys considerable success, with a huge following led by a strong Jockey Club in their new facilities based around The Terrace, surrounded by magnificent lawns and gardens full of prize winning roses.
2009 The Gawler Cup was won by Luna Spirit ridden by B Claridge
2010 The Gawler Cup ($40,000) over 1500 metres was won by Electronic Million (7/2) trained by Heather and Kevin Frew and ridden by Jordan Frew
2011 The Gawler Cup ($40,000) over 1500 metres was won by Sandhill Prince (8/1) trained by Sam Turner and ridden by Dom Tourneur
2012 The Gawler Cup ($40,000) over 1500 metres was won by About Me (6/1) trained by John Macmillan and ridden by Jamie Kah
2013 The Gawler Cup ($40,000) over 1500 metres was won by Starkiato (11/4) trained by Lloyd Kennewell and ridden by Joe Bowditch
2014 The Gawler Cup ($40,000) over 1500 metres was won by Boristar (9/2) trained by John Macmillan and ridden by Jamie Kah
2015 The Gawler Cup ($50,000) over 1500 metres was won by Okahu Bay (16/1) trained by Phillip Stokes and ridden by Dom Tourneur
2016 The Gawler Cup ($50,000) over 1500 metres was won by King’s Pardon (40/1) trained by Marilyn Smith and ridden by Damien Thornton
2017 The Gawler Cup ($50,000) over 1500 metres was won by Lady Silhouette (17/2) trained by Gary Searle and ridden by Dylan Caboche
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
