The Gillespie Fairground races are held in the Texas town of Fredericksburg, approximately 128 kilometres west of the city of Austin. The Fair has a rich history which first began in 1881 on ground which had been Fort Martin Scott. The first race track was built using logs dragged on to the parade grounds and was situated on East Travis Street. Further sites were used for the Fair in the next 20 years, the third such site being situated between South Adams and South Lincoln. It was in 1976 that the County Fair moved to its current location close to the county airport. It is amazing to report on the variety of races which have been held in the past. As well as thoroughbred racing there have been trotting races, bicycle races and in one well reported year 3 elephants raced each other. Within a year of moving to its new site work began on Fredericksburg Downs racecourse, including the construction of a grandstand with the capacity to seat 3,000. However, at this stage the gambling laws of Texas did not allow for a pari-mutuel betting system to operate. Indeed, it took a further 13 years before sufficient progress was made to enable a race meeting to take place. The inaugural race meeting was staged on 26th May 1990 on a 5 furlong oval dirt track within the Fairground. Today 8 race days are scheduled to take place in July and August, culminating in the running of the Texas Thoroughbred Breeders Stakes. |
