TOWNSVILLE RACECOURSE
The Townsville Racecourse is a Metropolitan Racecourse and is located in North Queensland, about 1000 miles North of Brisbane at Cluden Park.
	Early records show that a 3 day meeting, administered by Flinders and Burdenham Race Club, took place as early as 1866 at Cleveland Park with the principal race being the Town Plate over 3 miles. In 1874 the Townsville Turf Club came into being and campaigned for a new site closer to the Cluden Railway line. However, there was still a period of time before this objective was reached and the first meeting was held in 1882. By 1884 the first Townsville Cup was contested and won by Ellington.
One of the current racecourses main meetings is the North Queensland Amateur Turf Club Carnival, known locally as the Townsville Amateur, and takes place each August. The 2009 event is scheduled to take place from 20th to 22nd August.
	The principal race at the Carnival is the Townsville Amateur Cup run on the Saturday of Carnival week. In the latest renewal in 2008 the 1960 metre race resulted in a thrilling dead heat, the first in the history of the Cup, between Sooth Sayer and Stage Shaker. It was made even more remarkable because on the same programme Silent Realm and Guru Cheiron had also dead heated earlier in the MixElectrical Class 3 Handicap.
If you have badges, racecards, pictures of the racecourse or further details about the course, including your memories, then email johnslusar@fsmail.net