Historical information

The people in the photograph were enjoying a day out at a Sunbury race meeting some time in the early 1900s. Races at Sunbury began in 1886 with the establishment of the Sunbury Racecourse that was located along Racecourse Road on a section of the Rupertswood Estate on land consisting of six furlongs and two straights. The site included a patron’s stand, saddling paddock, bookmakers’ enclosure, two bars, a committee room, judges box, stables, toilets, six entrance gates and ticket boxes. Special trains from Melbourne brought patrons and horses to the Sunbury race meetings. A report in the Melbourne Argus newspaper in 1922, stated that city taxi drivers came out to Sunbury to drive patrons to the racecourse, which was located about 3 kms from the Sunbury station. Some time however, between 1886 and 1901, there was a period when the racing club had been inactive. A meeting was called in 1901 to restore the club’s activities. With a substantial loan from Mr. Clarke the committee was able to organise the installation of a turnstile, perimeter fencing and irrigation of the course by a windmill that pumped water from a recently constructed dam that was on the estate. The club continued to function until 1942, during World War 2, and did not resume activities after the end of the war. The land was eventually sold for housing development.

Significance

The Sunbury Race meetings were popular with the racing fraternity not only in the district but further afield and were deemed sufficiently important to run special trains from Melbourne to Sunbury on Race days.

Physical description

A non-digital sepia photograph with a strong cardboard backing of a crowd of people dressed smartly for a day out at the races. Most of the spectators are seated in a long marquee. Three men on the RHS are looking at a horse that is lying on the ground.On the back of the card there are scribbled notes and numbers which seem to indicate the photograph has been used for a publication at some time.