Victoria Park Racecourse, Sydney

Victoria Park Racecourse was a racecourse in Zetland, an inner-city suburb, south of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was bordered by O’Dea Avenue, South Dowling Street, Epsom Road and Joynton Avenue.

The site was originally a lagoon and swamp which was drained in the early 1900s to create the racecourse. The racecourse was developed and privately owned by Sir James John Joynton Smith (1858–1943), a hotelier, racecourse and newspaper owner. It was said at the time to be the grandest and finest of the pony horseracing course in Sydney.

In 1908, a clay-and-cinder track, 1.81 kilometres in length, was built around the horseracing course, which was used for speedway racing by both cars and motorcycles until the early 1920s.The Macquarie Dictionary of Motoring, 1986, page 517. The first motor racing meeting was held on 6 October 1908 and unusually, the schedule consisted of six horse races followed by two heats and a final of the ''One Hundred Guinea Handicap'' car race. Due to delays during the horse races, the final was postponed until 8 October and was won by Fred Howarth driving a Sizaire-Naudin.

In 1909, the first powered flight in Australia took place there in a Wright Model A aeroplane named "The Stella". The pilot was Colin Defries. Although only flying at , it is acknowledged by Australian historians ^{/sup> and the Aviation Historical Society of Australia, that the definition of flight established by the Gorell Committee on behalf of the Aero Club of Great Britain gives Colin Defries credit as the first to make an aeroplane flight in Australia. A 20-page booklet entitled ''The History of Aviation Souvenir Australian Tour'' by Ambrose Pratt, under direction of J & N Tait (price 6d), was issued at the time. It contains pictures of the pilot and the plane, as well as a seated passenger, with caption "preparing to fly".}

During World War II, the site was used for an aircraft factory. In 1945 it reopened as a horse training course.

The racecourse was bought by British businessman Lord Nuffield in 1947, and from 1950 the site was used by Nuffield Australia for a motor vehicle assembly facility. Vehicle production was continued by Nuffield Australia and its successors BMC Australia and Leyland Australia until the factory was closed in 1975.

The site was acquired by the Commonwealth of Australia for a naval stores depot which operated until the mid-1990s. The site is currently undergoing redevelopment into high density housing. A three-storey totalisator building remains on the site, which has been used as a site office by the redevelopers, and will become the Green Square library.Peake, W
Unregistered Proprietary Horseracing in Sydney, 1888-1942
University of Western Sydney, December 2004. The racecourse is also remembered in the name of in ''Tote Park'', a small park on the site.

1935 Racebook

File:1935 Victoria Park Zetland N.S.W. Racebook P1.jpg, Front page 1935 Victoria Park meeting racebook.
File:1935 Victoria Park Zetland N.S.W. Racebook P2.jpg, 1935 Victoria Park meeting showing raceday officials.
File:1935 Victoria Park Zetland N.S.W. Racebook P3.jpg, 1935 Victoria Park meeting showing starters and results.
File:1935 Victoria Park Zetland N.S.W. Racebook P4.jpg, 1935 Victoria Park meeting showing the winner, Bim Boy.
File:1935 Victoria Park Zetland N.S.W. Racebook P5.jpg, Back cover showing charges at the entrance gates.

Image Gallery

File:Rogilla 1935 Sir Herbert Maitland Stakes Victoria Park Racecourse Zetland Sydney Jockey Darby Munro Trainer Les Haigh.jpg, Rogilla & Darby Munro Victoria Park racecourse 1935.
Image:Victoria Park racecourse 1.jpg, Collecting winnings, Victoria Park racecourse.

References

{{SydneyRacing

Former buildings and structures in Sydney
Sports venues in Sydney
Defunct horse racing venues in Australia
Defunct motorsport venues in Australia
Demolished buildings and structures in Sydney
Demolished sports venues