Earliest Meeting: September 1738
Final Meeting: 1777
The earliest record of racing in the Berkshire town of Newbury was in 1738 on common land, known as Wash Common, to the south of Newbury which was acquired by the Mayor and Newbury Corporation in 1627. The Wash staged racing in the mid-18th century, and results from meetings held from 1738 to 1740 were included in Racing Calendars of the time, but then ceased to be recorded. It was the norm in the 18th century for lady owners to run their horses under the names of their husbands. However, on the second day of the September 1739 meeting a certain Mrs Jones entered her grey mare Why Not for a 5 Guineas race. This left the corporations organisers in such a quandary that they awarded her the prize without having to race, and cancelled that particular race. However, it is believed that racing continued, particularly when military men were present in the area. One of the final occasions when racing on ‘the Wash’ was mentioned was in 1777 when the 3rd Dragoons were stationed close to Newbury and took part in races. What amazed the locals was that the drummers in the Dragoons were black men.
Tuesday 18th September 1739
Newbury £30 Plate (each to carry 11 stone)
1. Driver, chestnut horse owned by Mr Beaver
2. Squirt, chestnut horse owned by Lord Portmore
Betting: 1/3 Squirt
Wednesday 19th September 1739
Newbury £10 Plate
1. Why Not owned by Mr Jones (started alone)
Why Not was really owned by Mrs Jones who had already claimed a 5 Guineas prize when the organisers would not let anyone compete against her.
Thursday 20th September 1739
Newbury £15 Plate
1. Smiling Nell, bay mare owned by Mr Clever
The map below was issued by John Rocque in 1761 and shows the Wash Common area at the bottom left hand side of the map.
It was enclosed in 1850 and has now been completely covered by housing estates.
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
