Earliest meeting: Monday 7th October 1839
Final meeting: Monday 17th May 1869
The Northamptonshire town of Kettering held races in its own right as early as 1735, but a separate series of races took place in the vicinity of the town for a 30 year period in the 19th century when organised by the local Yeomanry Group. The inaugural meeting was held on Monday 7th October 1839 when the main race was for a Silver Cup which went to Mr Biggs’s Crucifix. The meeting was nomadic and the next year the course was marked out in large fields owned by Mr W Richards at Glenn. It took place on Monday 21st September 1840, with the Hurdle race won by Mr Bigg’s Snacks, although he had to settle for third place in the feature Yeomanry Cup. Races continued annually and on Monday 21st May 1866 the chosen one mile course was on Mawsley Great Field between Loddington and Faxton, about 5 miles from Kettering. The final meeting took place on Monday 17th May 1869.

Monday 21st September 1840
The Yeomanry Cup
1. Jack Sheppard, brown colt owned by Mr T Burnaby
2. Dick Turpin, bay horse owned by Mr Butler
3. Snacks, chestnut horse owned by Mr Biggs

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

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