Riverside west of the Tower, south bank. Windsor Racecourse

Riverside west of the Tower, south bank. Windsor Racecourse

This post covers sites to the south of the river only. North of the river is Boveney Lock

Post to the east Clewer and Eton Cuckoo Weir
Post to the west Dedworth The Willows



Maidenhead Road
This was once called Surely Hall Road
Racecourse Marina. Entrance. Run by Tingedene Marina – who run a number of similar operators. They have managed this one since 2007. The entrance is via the upstream part of Clewer Mill Stream from Bush Ait.
Windsor Racecourse Marina Holiday Park. It is owned and operated by Tingdene Parks Limited who purchased it in 2007. The holiday park dates back to the early 1970’s.
250 The Windsor Lad. This is now a chain restaurant/pub.  This was built in 1940 as a road house.  It took over the licence of the closed Crown Pub in central Windsor. It was then a Courage house. Windsor Lad was a well known and successful racehorse in the 1930s but nothing to do with Windsor Race Course.
Dedworth Manor Open Space. This square covers a tiny northern portion of this local authority park. By the road is a ‘Coronation arch’ which was used in Long Walk in 2013 and has been moved here.
Centrica offices. This was British Gas Home Head Office
Sutherland Grange Nature Reserve. 'Sutherland Grange' was the name of a large house on the site long since demolished, with the original name retained. The field on the western side of the park is known as Sutherland Grange Hay Meadow and has a huge variety of flowers and grasses.


The Rays
The vast majority of this square is taken up with the race course. To the east is an area of facilities buildings, a grandstand, restaurants and small parade and other area. The Rays itself is essentially an island between the Millstream and the Thames. The Racecourse entrance is on Maidenhead Road and the area also includes the Marina and the Caravan site.
Royal Windsor Race Course.  Flat racing began on Rays Meadow in 1866 set up by John Frail a barber who managed Disraeli’s election campaigns. He and his family owned a number of racecourses – he set about promoting Windsor energetically and it soon became established as a major racing venue.  The first flat race meeting was a two day fixture on the fifth and sixth of June 1866, and national hunt racing was introduced in 1867. Windsor did not try to compete with Ascot, but gave opportunities to the owners of other horses. He also established jump racing here. Windsor is Britain’s only flat course to stage racing over an almost complete figure of eight circuit. During both world wars Windsor avoided the fate of most British racecourses, and remained open during both wars in order to bolster morale. Windsor stopped staging its own national hunt meetings in 1998, and moved put on more flat meetings.  It has twenty six annual fixtures with pattern and listed races, and summer evening meetings on Mondays.

Sources
Eade. Along the Thames
Racing Sight. Web site
RoyalWindsorforum. Web site
Royal Windsor Race Course. Webs site
Tingedene Marinas. Web site
Wikipedia. As appropriate
Windsor and Maidenhead Council. Web site
Windsor Lad. Web site
Windsor Pub History. Web site

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