The Adelaide Hunt Club is an Australian

fox hunting Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking, chase and, if caught, the killing of a fox, normally a red fox, by trained foxhounds or other scent hounds. A group of unarmed followers, led by a "master of foxhounds" (or "master of hounds" ...

club founded in the 1840s.

History

Originally called The Adelaide Hounds, the club was founded in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

in the early 1840s.Adelaide Hunt Club. As early as 3 July 1841, the Governor of South Australia Sir George Grey KCB along with about 25 horsemen, hounds and ladies in carriages met for a day’s hunting, on this day a

wild dog A free-ranging dog is a dog that is not confined to a yard or house. Free-ranging dogs include street dogs, village dogs, stray dogs, feral dogs, etc., and may be owned or unowned. The global dog population is estimated to be 900 million, of whi ...

was the quarry. Without foxes to hunt, wild dogs,

kangaroo Kangaroos are marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use, the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...

s and

emu The emu (; ''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is a species of flightless bird endemism, endemic to Australia, where it is the Tallest extant birds, tallest native bird. It is the only extant taxon, extant member of the genus ''Dromaius'' and the ...

s were the early quarry.Brown. Due to lack of support, hunting declined in Adelaide and the pack was dispersed in the 1850s but was revived in 1869 by a group of wealthy sportsmen led by William Blackler, who imported sufficient

hounds A hound is a type of dog that assists hunters by tracking or chasing the animal being hunted. Hound may also refer to: * Dog, any dog of the subfamily Caninae Arts and entertainment * ''Hounds'' (TV series), a 2012 television comedy series set ...

to form a pack. The first hunt with his pack was held on 24 May of that year and attracted many interested huntsmen and spectators. In 1871, after a dispute with the Club, Blackler withdrew his support, and at the instigation of James A. Ellery passed his pack to the newly-formed South-East (later Mount Gambier) Hunt Club. Deer hunting was attempted on several occasions, but provided rather pedestrian sport and the most interesting riding was provided by

drag hunting Drag hunting or draghunting is a form of equestrian sport where mounted riders hunt the trail of an artificially laid scent with hounds. Description Drag hunting is an equestrian sport where a field of mounted riders chase a pack of hounds who fo ...

, where an

aniseed Anise (; '), also called aniseed or rarely anix, is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae native to the eastern Mediterranean region and Southwest Asia. The flavor and aroma of its seeds have similarities with some other spices and herbs, ...

scent trail was dragged over a course guaranteed to present challenges to the abilities of horse and rider. The club is very closely linked with the city’s history with events such as the annual ball and steeplechase being social highlights of the new colony. The pack was originally kennelled at various locations on the

Adelaide Plains The Adelaide Plains (Kaurna name Tarndanya) is a plain in South Australia lying between the coast ( Gulf St Vincent) on the west and the Mount Lofty Ranges on the east. The southernmost tip of the plain is in the southern seaside suburbs of A ...

although urban expansion meant they had to move in the late-1900s. The club's current kennels are located at Woodside in the

Adelaide Hills The Adelaide Hills region is located in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges east of the city of Adelaide in the state of South Australia. The largest town in the area, Mount Barker, South Australia, Mount Barker, is one of Australia's fastest-growi ...

. In 1901

Simpson Newland Simpson Newland CMG (2 November 1835 – 27 June 1925), pastoralist, author and politician, was a pioneer in Australia who made significant contributions to development around the Murray River. He was also an author of practical works and novel ...

was president of the club, which at that time held regular meets in the Erindale area.

Officials

Masters (full title: Master of the Foxhounds, MFH) of the Adelaide Hounds included: *1844: C. Campbell *1847: Thomas Shayle *1851, 1852: William van Sittart *1855: Arthur Malcom *1862: W. van Sittart Masters of the Adelaide Hunt Club include: :(Elections were held around April of each year) *1869: William Blackler *1870: E. G. Blackmore *1871: William Blackler *1872: H. E. Downer *1873:

Seth Ferry Seth "The Master" Ferry (25 May 1839 – 20 October 1932) was a prominent rider, dealer, owner and trainer of racehorses in South Australia. Biography Seth Ferry was born at "Providence House", Ponders End, Lower Edmonton, Middlesex, where his p ...

*1874: John Hart *1875: Arthur Rait Malcom *1876: John Hart *1877–1878: Sir J. Lancelot Stirling *1879: H. E. Downer *1880-1881: Sir J. Lancelot Stirling *1882: Harry Bickford *1883–1884: James Hay (son of Alexander Hay) *1885: E. G. Blackmore *1886–1892: Allan Baker (son of

John Baker John Baker or Jon Baker may refer to: Military figures *John Baker (American Revolutionary War) (1731–1787), American Revolutionary War hero, for whom Baker County, Georgia was named *John Baker (general) (1936–2007), Australian Chief of the ...

) *1893–1897: Frank H. Downer *1898–1900: John Tennant Love *1901–1904: H. C. Cave *1905–1906: R. A. Sanders *1907–1909: Carew Reynell *1910–1912: W. S. Bright *1913: K. Lister Colley, grandson of Richard Bowen Colley *1914–1915: Ernest M. Luxmoore *1919–1921: E. M. Luxmoore *1922: J. J. Mortimer *1923: E. M. Luxmoore *1924–1928: Paul Teesdale Smith *1929–1932: W. P. A. Lapthorne *1933–1936: E. M. Luxmoore *1937–1939: Francis C. Bickford *1940: E. M. Luxmoore :Recess during WWII *1946–1948: Tom Downer *1949: T. H. Hawkes *1950–1951: Keith Frayne *1952–1954: James R. Balharry

Race meetings

The first Hunt Club race meeting was held at the Thebarton Course on 2 October 1869. Races held were: Hunt Club Cup, Amateur Flat Race, Hunters' Stakes and Hurry Skurry. The meeting was held at the Adelaide Old Racecourse from 1870 to 1874, then

Morphettville Morphettville is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Marion. The northern part of the suburb is bounded by the Glenelg tram line, and fully occupied by the Morphettville Racecourse (horseracing track). The tram barn storage an ...

from 1875 to 1884; then the S.A.J.C. became insolvent and Morphettville was mortgaged and the Hunt Club held its meetings at the Old Course 1885 then back to Morphettville 1886 to 1914, Victoria Park in 1915, then a break until 1919.

References

Bibliography

Adelaide Hunt Club website, ''www.adelaidehuntclub.com.au''
retrieved 2 October 2016.

retrieved 2 October 2016. * Brown, Judith M., ''Town life in pioneer South Australia'', Rigby, 1980, {{ISBN, 9780727013347. 1840s establishments in Australia Sports clubs and teams established in the 1840s Sports clubs and teams in Adelaide Fox hunts in Australia Hunting organizations