Buxton Racecourse was a

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

track in the 19th century on Fairfield Common near

Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

, England. In 1804 an earlier racecourse field was recorded at Heathfield Nook, on the other side of Buxton town. Fairfield Common was established centuries ago as common grazing land. A racecourse was laid out on the common in the early 1800s. From 1821 racing and county cock fighting meetings were held each summer. The

6th Duke of Devonshire William George Spencer Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire, (21 May 1790 K. D. Reynolds, ‘Cavendish, William George Spencer, sixth duke of Devonshire (1790–1858)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; ...

commissioned a grandstand building costing £1,000 which stood in the 1830s. The race programme for the meeting on 16th-17th June 1830 lists the Duke of Devonshire's Gold Cup race, The Noblemen's and Gentlemen's Subscription Plate race and the Farmers' Stakes race. That year a mass riot and fight broke out. Buxton Racecourse Meeting Programme 16-17th June 1830

Buxton Racecourse Meeting Programme 16-17th June 1830

''Pigot's Commercial Directory for Derbyshire'' of 1835 reported:

"On a large tract of waste ground, an excellent round course is formed, where horse-races take place on the Wednesday and Thursday in the week after the meeting at Newton-in-the-Willows; and it is provided with a handsome stand for the accommodation of visitors."

The racecourse closed after the last race meeting in 1840 and the grandstand was subsequently pulled down. Timbers from the stand were reused in the building of the Methodist Chapel at Higher Buxton in 1849. The racetrack's grandstand is shown on the 1841 tithe map of Fairfield and the track itself is shown on an old OS map from c.1830s.

Buxton and High Peak Golf Club Buxton and High Peak Golf Club at Fairfield near Buxton in Derbyshire opened in 1887. The course is long with a par of 69. It is the oldest golf course in Buxton and one of the oldest in Derbyshire. Peak Practice golf driving range at Barms ...

was founded in 1887, after a nine-hole course was laid out on Fairfield Common in 1886. The course was extended to 18 holes in 1893. The 9th par 5 hole is called Stand Side, which refers to where the racecourse grandstand once stood. Buxton Racecourse Map 1821-1840

Another local race track is Buxton Raceway, which is a modern oval motorsport track 3 miles south of Buxton. Racing started at the site in 1974 when it was known as 'High Edge'.{{Cite web, title=B U X T O N R A C E W A Y, url=https://buxtonraceway.com/about.htm, access-date=2020-06-06, website=buxtonraceway.com

References

Defunct horse racing venues in England

Racecourse A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also use ...