Ascot Racecourse, Sydney

Ascot Racecourse is a former racecourse in the southern Sydney suburb of Mascot, close to the Mascot Aerodrome. It was named after Royal Ascot Racecourse in the United Kingdom. It is now part of the site of Sydney Airport. It operated from 1904 to 1941, and was one of four racecourses in Sydney where unregistered proprietary horse racing took place. [Peake, W. [http://library.uws.edu.au/adt-NUWS/uploads/approved/adt-NUWS20050817.163106/public/01Front.pdf Unregistered Proprietary Horseracing in Sydney, 1888-1942] University of Western Sydney, December 2004.] Large crowds were moved to and from the racecourse by a dedicated tramline from Botany Road. [Timmony, PJ. [http://www.aptnsw.org.au/trams.html Handling Heavy Traffic on Special Occasions] . 6 February 1934, from "Action For Public Transport".] The first aeroplane flight over Sydney was made from Ascot Racecourse on 5 May 1911. [ [http://sydneyairport.com.au/NR/rdonlyres/76E11549-7747-4291-9DA1-F6FC457216A0/0/SydAir_Enviro_Sect04_10.pdf Sydney Airport Environment 2006-2010] ] The racecourse closed during World War 2 when it was used as a military camp. It did not reopen after the war, and was demolished as part of expansion works for Sydney Airport. The only surviving physical evidence of the racecourse is fifteen fig trees which formerly lined the racecourse entrance. These trees are located near the airports long-term carpark, and are the subject of heritage preservation. [ [http://sydneyairport.com.au/NR/rdonlyres/76E11549-7747-4291-9DA1-F6FC457216A0/0/SydAir_Enviro_Sect04_10.pdf Sydney Airport Environment 2006-2010] ]

ee also

* Ascot Racecourse, Western Australia

References