Henry Reeves

Clerk of the Course

Henry Reeves (1804-1852) was transported to Sydney on the “Hercules” in 1825. He received a conditional pardon in 1841 and established a coaching business and livery stable in West Maitland. In 1841 he took over the licence of the Albion Inn in High Street, West Maitland, and leased an adjoining 10 acre grazing paddock. Reeves sold and raffled horses, provided stud services, and in 1846 established the Maitland Jockey Club. In 1847, he transferred his licence to the Fitzroy Inn, West Maitland. In the same year the journal Heads of the People describes Reeves as the “proprietor of the Fitzroy Hotel at West Maitland and Clerk of the Course…a breeder of horses and genuine Turfite”. He sold the hotel and his studhorses in 1849 due to failing health. He became an auctioneer and retained an interest in racehorses and breeding. Henry Reeves died aged 47 years on April 19, 1852 at his residence in Church Street, West Maitland.

References:
Horsemen of the first frontier (1788-1900) and the Serpent’s legacy / by Keith R. Binney. Neutral Bay, N.S.W. : Volcanic Productions , [2005].
Heads of the people: an illustrated journal of literature, whims, and oddities. [Sydney : W. Baker], 1847-1848, Vol. 1, no. 25, October 2, 1847
The Maitland Mercury & Hunter River General Advertiser, April 21, 1852, p. 3 on Trove. http://trove.nla.gov.au/ (accessed July 16, 2010)