Harley Walden

I had the honour of presenting Harley Walden’s eulogy at his memorial service on Monday 24^th April 2017. Peter Snowdon and Tommy Ollerton were two of the pall-bearers. If it hadn’t been for Harley’s lifelong consuming passion for the thoroughbred industry and the Scone Race Club in particular much valuable history would be lost to posterity. Among many other attributes Harley was a prolific amateur journalist. He wrote and recorded more about the Scone Race Club than anyone else I know.

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“White Park (Racecourse) Wake”

(Sub-committee of the Scone Race Club Ltd)

Invitation

Open Letter to the Citizens of Scone

Our committee has been constituted and delegated by the Scone Race Club Ltd to organise and co-ordinate activities to celebrate the final race meeting to be conducted at the White Park Racecourse on Saturday 22^nd and Monday 24^th October 1994. We have allocated both Saturday 22^nd October 1994 as the special day for “Wake” celebrations.

We wish to emphasise that we see this memorable and historic occasion as belonging to the citizens of Scone and Shire, as well as to the wider racing community at large. We would like to ensure that the last meeting at our unique and beautiful little racecourse is marked indelibly in history with an appropriate finale.

We would also like to extend our sincere thanks on behalf of our parent body and ourselves to all our loyal patrons, supporters and sponsors, and fervently hope for, and seek your endorsement for the exciting and propitious future at Satur.

We have expended considerable time and energy in order to secure the “Wake” as an event to be savoured by all. Special entertainment for young and old has been planned so that the whole family and broad community may take part in this convivial occasion.

White Park Racecourse has earned and enjoyed a justifiably high reputation for aura and ambience. We would like to ensure that Saturday 22^nd October 1994 is the day of days to remember and unreservedly extend to everyone our warmest and most sincere invitation to participate in one of Scone’s most significant and historic events.

W P Howey

On behalf of the White Park (Racecourse) Wake Committee comprising:

W P Howey (Convenor); A A Ashford; J W Johnston; A M Rose; H Walden; Stan Wicks; W Norman.

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L B Israel

Scone Race Club President 1955 – 1961, 1964 – 1965

Acknowledgement:  Harley Walden and “The Spirit Within. Scone’s Racing History”.

Lionel Israel severed his ties with the thoroughbred industry when he sold his Segenhoe Stud in 1985. After 48 years on the famous property east of Scone; his was a sixty-year association with the racing world.

Mr Israel started racing horses in Newcastle just after World War I at the age of 17. He often recalled, “My father told me I would go broke, but I just loved horses too much to give it away”.

He earned for himself a reputation for breeding quality blood stock. A tribute to the shrewd judgement he possessed was probably brought ot the fore in 1970 when Kaoru Star arrived at Segenhoe.

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John Kelso

Scone Race Club President 1965 – 1967, 1972 – 1978

Acknowledgement:  Harley Walden and “The Spirit Within. Scone’s Racing History”.

John Kelso came down from Queensland in the mid-1950s and established the Timor Creek Stud east of the town of Murrurundi in the upper reaches of the Hunter Valley.

The name Kelso has for many years been well entrenched in the horse racing and breeding circles. John’s father Jack Kelso was a well-known racing steward who served on the panel of the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club for six seasons in the 1960s. John’s grandfather William Kelso bred, owned and trained the winner of the 1928 Melbourne Cup winner ‘Statesman’.

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D H Robertson MC

Scone Race Club President 1944 – 1955

Acknowledgement:  Harley Walden and “The Spirit Within. Scone’s Racing History”.

“Australia’s cattle industry lost a pioneer breeder, a leader at the highest level in country thoroughbred racing, courageous soldier and a true gentleman”.

These were the words echoed by many who knew and admired Mr Douglas Robertson following his death in 1967.

The late Doug Robertson had a distinguished record in World War I when he was a commissioned officer and was awarded the Military Cross for gallantry in action.

He founded the “Albinia” Shorthorn Stud in 1934 on the property “Blackdown” in the Bathurst area and in 1939 moved it to “Turanville” just south of Scone in the Hunter valley NSW. ‘Turanville’ had previously been the home base of the legendary horse breeder Thomas Cook.

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H R ‘Harry’ Hayes

Scone Race Club President 1961 – 1964, 1967 – 1972

Acknowledgement:  Harley Walden and “The Spirit Within. Scone’s Racing History”.

“I think he was one of the unsung heroes in Upper Hunter racing”

“He was a very generous man for anything he believed in and he was always a great contributor to horse racing”.

These are the words spoken by John Kelso (himself a former president of Scone Race Club) when describing the late Harry Hayes who passed away in February 1991, but not before he had left an indelible impression on the community as a whole. A highly successful business man, Harry Hayes at one stage owned the Scone Abattoir and various butcher’s shops in the Upper Hunter as well as his “Leighton Park” property at Segenhoe. His brood mare band bred him such good horses as Skellatar, Zozima, Yankee Clipper, Friendly Feeling and Friendly Joy.

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Martin ‘Herbie’ Eveleigh:  ‘Local Legend’

The featured image shows Herbie Eveleigh returning to scale to rapturous applause on his own horse Bo Yanko. The occasion was the Aberdeen Cup of 1989 run at White Park, Scone. Herbie received one of the warmest receptions of his long career. It helped lubricate the ambience that Bo Yanko started a short priced favourite. He was a very good racehorse.

Apparently he was christened Martin Eveleigh; but never known by his mother’s specially chosen Sunday name. He was always just ‘Herbie’.

During the time White Park was the official home for the Scone Race Club (1947 – 1994) Herbie Eveleigh graduated from apprentice rider to master jockey. No-one knew the not-so-sublime subtleties of the tight little course better than Herbie. His inaugural mentor (master) was the late Scott Johnston based at Tyrone Stud on the extreme northern edge of the township. Rumour has it that from the age of 14 or even less young Herbie walked across the paddocks from the Eveleigh family home on Noblet Road to ride work for Mr Johnston. School attendance became irregular. Herbie’s future was set. There were more regular ‘works outs’ and track-work commitments at White Park.

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ARABS CUP

The Featured image shows the presentation of the ARABS Improvers Cup held at Scone Race Club’s White Park Racetrack in April 1980. L to R: Bill Howey (Scone Race Club President), Mr George Ryder (Chairman of the Sydney Turf Club), Mrs Jan Higson (NOT Gibson; George Ryders’ daughter and ARABS ‘secretary’), Kelly Almond (part-owner and trainer of Hunter’s Royal, who won the Improvers Cup), Mr Norman Lane (Chairman of the ARABS Committee), Mr Neville Cox (part-owner of Hunter’s Royal) and Mr David Almond (part-owner of Hunter’s Royal).

This might not be what you expect? It used to be the ‘biggest thing’ at Scone Race Club after the May Cup meeting. The latter was always the biggest single sporting event in the valley.

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Gloaming (26)

Plate 15 in ‘Racehorses in Australia’ (Edited by Dr W H Lang, Ken Austin and Dr Stewart McKay): From a painting of the horse by Martin Stainforth at the age of 6 years in the possession of the artist.

Gloaming (26). Bay Gelding, 1915, by The Welkin (imp.) – Light (imp.). Winner of 43 races out of 46 starts to date of publication (1922), and £28,443. Owned by Mr G D Greenwood, NZ. One of the most brilliant horses bred in Australia. His battles with Beauford raced by Mr W H Mackay were epic.

Trafalgar (4*)

Plate 12 in ‘Racehorses in Australia’ (Edited by Dr W H Lang, Ken Austin and Dr Stewart McKay): From a painting of the horse by Martin Stainforth at the age of 7 years in the possession of Dr Stewart Mackay.

Trafalgar (4*). Chestnut Horse, 1905, by Wallace – Grand Canary. Winner of £22,111, and a high class stayer. At stud in NSW. Sire of Visibility, Heart of Oak, Annexit, etc. Owned by the Executors of the late Walter Mitchell, NSW.