1861 Melbourne Cup

1861 Melbourne Cup
Melbourne Cup
Illustration of 1861 winner Archer
LocationFlemington Racecourse
Date7 November 1861
Distance2 miles
Winning horseArcher
Winning time3:52
Final odds6/1
JockeyJohn Cutts
TrainerEtienne L. de Mestre
OwnerEtienne L. de Mestre
SurfaceTurf
Attendance4000

The 1861 Melbourne Cup was a two-mile handicap horse race which took place on Thursday, 7 November 1861.[1][2] The race was organised by the Victoria Turf Club and held at the Flemington Racecourse (then known as the Melbourne Racecourse).[3]

This year was the first running of the Melbourne Cup.[1] Billed as "one of the finest races ever seen upon the course,"[4] 57 horses were nominated and there were 20 acceptances. Three were scratched on race day, leaving 17 starters.[5][6][7]

After one false start, three horses fell due to congestion on the first turn,[6] resulting in deaths to two runners Despatch and Medora.[8] One jockey was knocked unconscious and Joe Morrison sustained a compound fracture to his arm after coming off Despatch.[7][9] The fall led to changes to the track at Flemington, including lengthening the straight.[6]

Mormon led the remaining runners down the river side of the course, with Prince and Flatcatcher falling back from the leader due to the pace, while Antonelli and the two de Mestre runners moved forward.[10] Archer took the lead ahead of Antonelli at the far turn and by the time Archer led the field into the straight its lead was so great that the race was only on for second place. Mormon eventually drew forward from the pack to finish second ahead of Prince who got ahead of a tiring Antonelli.[10]

Ridden by John Cutts, Archer won the race by six lengths in a time of 3:52.[8] Archer had been leased by Etienne L. de Mestre, and had been brought to Melbourne from Sydney aboard the SS City of Sydney, which transported several horses to Melbourne. A long-standing folktale was that Archer had walked from Nowra to Flemington.[7][6]

As a lessee de Mestre owned and was fully responsible for Archer during the lease. Archer was leased from the "Exeter Farm" of Jembaicumbene near Braidwood, New South Wales. His owners were Thomas John "Tom" Roberts (a good school-friend of de Mestre's), Rowland H. Hassall (Roberts' brother-in-law), and Edmund Molyneux Royds and William Edward Royds (Roberts' nephews).[11][12][13]

The race was held not long after news had reached Melbourne of the death of explorers Burke and Wills who had left Melbourne in August 1860, with some accounting that the news had led to lower than expected attendance for the race meeting.[7][3]

Full results

This is the list of placegetters for the 1861 Melbourne Cup.[1][14][15][4][10]

Place Horse Age
Gender 		Jockey Weight Trainer Owner Odds Margin
1 Archer 5y h John Cutts 9 st 7 lb (60.3 kg) Etienne L. de Mestre Etienne L. de Mestre 5/1 6 lengths
2 Mormon 6y h William Simpson 10 st 1 lb (64.0 kg) N/a James Henderson 3/1 fav. 2 lengths
3 Prince Aged g J. Bishop 8 st 0 lb (50.8 kg) N/a William Pearson 20/1
4 Antonelli 3y c Cowen 6 st 7 lb (41.3 kg) N/a Mr. Warby 20/1
5 Toryboy 4y g H. Cooke 7 st 11 lb (49.4 kg) N/a William Cross Yuille 5/1
6 Flatcatcher Aged g Perkins 9 st 8 lb (60.8 kg) N/a Mr T.J. Bavin 10/1
7 The Moor Aged g Robinson 8 st 12 lb (56.2 kg) N/a George Watson 12/1
N/a Nutwith Aged g Sam Waldock 8 st 12 lb (56.2 kg) N/a Mr. J.D. Fisher 12/1
N/a Inheritor Aged g McCabe 8 st 7 lb (54.0 kg) Etienne L. de Mestre Etienne L. de Mestre 10/1
N/a Grey Dawn 4y m Harry Yeend 7 st 12 lb (49.9 kg) N/a John Coldham 25/1
N/a Black Bess 6y m James Monaghan 7 st 11 lb (49.4 kg) N/a Mr. Evans 50/1
N/a Sorcerer 3y g Hughes 6 st 9 lb (42.2 kg) N/a James Henderson 33/1
N/a Fireaway 3y g H. Howard 6 st 6 lb (40.8 kg) N/a Mr. Cole 20/1
N/a Lucy Ashton 3y f S. Davis 6 st 4 lb (39.9 kg) N/a Mr. Coleman 50/1
Fell Despatch Aged m Joe Morrison 8 st 9 lb (54.9 kg) N/a James Henderson 7/2
Fell Twilight Aged m Haynes 7 st 12 lb (49.9 kg) N/a John Coldham 20/1
Fell Medora 3y f J. Henderson 7 st 0 lb (44.5 kg) N/a James Henderson 16/1
SCR Eagle's Plume 3y c Lankey 6 st 7 lb (41.3 kg) N/a John Orr 20/1
SCR Parisan Aged g N/a 8 st 7 lb (54.0 kg) N/a Mr. T. Chirnside N/a
SCR Defence 6y g N/a 7 st 12 lb (49.9 kg) N/a Mr. Coleman N/a

Prizemoney

First prize £710, second prize £20.[2]

The winning owner was also presented with a hand-beaten gold watch.[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "On this day: The Melbourne Cup begins". Australian Geographic. 7 November 2013. Retrieved 28 October 2020.
  2. ^ a b "1861 Melbourne Cup MillersGuide". millersguide.identika.com.au. Archived from the original on 7 March 2020. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
  3. ^ a b Bernstein, D.L. (1969). The First Tuesday in November. Melbourne: William Heinemann Ltd. pp. 13–19.
  4. ^ a b "The Melbourne Cup". The Argus. Melbourne, Victoria. 7 November 1861. p. 6. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
  5. ^ "Essay – First Past the Post: The Melbourne Cup of 1861". Australian Dictionary of Biography. 1 February 2012. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d "Melbourne Cup Winners - 1861-1880". Victoria Racing Club. Retrieved 5 November 2025.
  7. ^ a b c d Rolfe, Costa (2008). Winners of the Melbourne Cup. Fitzroy, Australia: Red Dog. pp. 7–8. ISBN 9781742035093.
  8. ^ a b "The Melbourne Cup". The Argus. Melbourne, Victoria. 8 November 1861. p. 5. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
  9. ^ "WINNERS AND PLACED HORSES IN MELBOURNE CUP. 1861-1913". Winner. Melbourne, Victoria. 28 October 1914. p. 4. Retrieved 12 January 2026.
  10. ^ a b c Reubertstein. The History of the Melbourne Cup from 1861 to 1894 (1895 ed.). Melbourne, Australia: James J. Miller. pp. 9–10.
  11. ^ "Archer at Thoroughbred Heritage.com". Tbheritage.com. Archived from the original on 6 March 2009. Retrieved 1 February 2014.
  12. ^ "Shoalhaven - Sporting Hall of Fame" (PDF). www.shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 March 2011.
  13. ^ Binney, Keith Robert (2005). Horsemen of the First Frontier (1788–1900) and the Serpent's Legacy. Volcanic Productions. p. 367. ISBN 0-646-44865-X. Archived from the original on 9 July 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  14. ^ "1861 to 1870 Melbourne Cup Winners". races com au. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  15. ^ Cavanough, Maurice (1978). The Melbourne Cup (8 ed.). p. 445. ISBN 0727004859.
  16. ^ "Melbourne Cup trophy has colourful and creative history". abc.net.au. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 1 November 2013. Retrieved 10 January 2026.


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