Earliest meeting: Thursday 5th April 1877
Final meeting: Saturday 18th April 1914
The village of Oaksey lies in Wiltshire on the edge of the Wiltshire-Gloucestershire border. On the edge of the village is Oaksey Park and it was here that steeplechase meetings were held from the late 1800s under the direction of the Vale of White Horse Hunt Committee. The course was a right-handed course of a mile and a half with a run-in of 350 yards. The Vale of White Horse Hunt had started in 1831, and today its name is remembered with fondness by the racing public, who fully appreciate the contribution Lord Oaksey made to the sport of Steeplechasing during his lifetime. The VWH Hunt Group first organised races under rules at Swindon on Thursday 5th April 1877 when the VWH Hunt Cup was won by Master Skerratt owned by Mr G Ellinson. The inaugural meeting of the VWH at Oaksey Park was in 1882 when an 8 race card included the Royal Agricultural College Race. By 1889 the meeting was attracting some of the best steeplechasers in the country, with Father O’Flynn winning the Open Hunters’ Chase. He later went on to capture the biggest steeplechase of them all, the Grand National in 1892. The First World War put paid to the VWH Hunt meeting, with the final meeting taking place on Saturday 18th April 1914. There were Bona Fide meetings held after the War, the first of which was held on Saturday 8th April 1922, and later the VWH organised a full point to point programme which included the Royal Agricultural College race up until 1984.

Thursday 17th April 1884
VWH Open Hunters’ Steeplechase over 3 miles
1. Bronze, aged horse owned by Mr Hope Brooke
2. Cicero, chestnut gelding owned by Mr E A Craddock
3. Mytton’s Maid, bay mare owned by Mr J R Scott

The First World War put paid to the VWH Hunt meeting, with the final meeting taking place on Saturday 18th April 1914.

There were Bona Fide meetings held after the War, the first of which was held on Saturday 8th April 1922, and later the VWH organised a full point to point programme which included the Royal Agricultural College race up until 1984.

Little evidence remains of the previous existence of a racecourse on Oaksey Park, with the land now returned to farming.

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