1874 Melbourne Cup

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1874 Melbourne Cup
Melbourne Cup
Location Flemington Racecourse
Date5 November 1874
Distance2 miles
Winning horseHaricot
Winning time3:37.5
Final odds16/1
Jockey Paddy Piggott
Trainer Sam Harding
OwnerAndrew Chirnside
SurfaceTurf
Attendance75,000
←  1873
1875  →

The 1874 Melbourne Cup was a two-mile handicap horse race which took place on Thursday, 5 November 1874. [1]

Contents

This year was the fourteenth running of the Melbourne Cup.

Wild weather threatened in the lead-up to the race, [2] with 21 runners paying the final acceptance fees. There had been 79 runners initially enter into the race in June. [3] Break of Day was expected to do well should the ground remain soft or wet, while Goldsborough and The Diver were not expected to do well in those conditions. Previous year's winning trainer James Wilson had two runners, with King of the Ring expected to be the better horse. With a light weight, Haricot was expected to feature during the race, but was not fancied by many judges at the two-mile distance. Despite the threatened conditions, John Tait's Goldsborough started a short-priced favourite. [2] William Wilson, younger son of trainer James Wilson, was chosen to ride King of the Ring, a year after winning the race on board Don Juan. [4]

Four horses were scratched before the race day began — Papapa, Blue Peter, Menindie, and The Hook. [2] After morning showers, [4] the weather turned perfect for the day of the race, [5] with 18 runners starting the race. [6] Goldsborough and King of the Ring were the favoured runners. Haricot, bred in Victoria by Andrew Chirnside at Werribee bolted clear of the field to win the Cup. [6]

Haricot was near the lead from almost the start, getting in front of the field just beyond the first turn, increasing its lead to about 20 lengths down the back straight. [4] [5] The Diver and Protos went off in pursuit before the final turn to try and cut the advantage built up by Haricot, eventually Protos finished four lengths behind the winner, with The Diver third. [4] [7] The win surprised many at the racecourse, as it was supposed that Haricot could not sustain the pace set for the entire two miles. Haricot had previously won a race in Warrnambool as a three-year-old, and won the 1874 Ballarat Handicap. The horse had placed second in the Melbourne Stakes behind Dagworth in the lead up to the Melbourne Cup. [4]

Haricot's margin of victory was the largest winning margin in the race since Archer's consecutive wins. [4]

It was estimated that 75,000 people attended the racecourse — at the time the largest attendance for the Melbourne Cup. [4] The Victoria Racing Club collected £6000 in revenue from the race meeting. [8]

Full results

This is the list of placegetters for the 1874 Melbourne Cup. [9] [2] [10] [1] [11] [4] [5]

PlaceHorseAge
Gender		JockeyWeightTrainerOwnerOddsMargin
1Haricot4y gPaddy Piggott6 st 7 lb (41.3 kg)Sam HardingAndrew Chirnside16/14 lengths
2Protos7y gG. Arthur8 st 9 lb (54.9 kg) James Wilson James Wilson 20/1Neck
3The Diver (late Dolphin)4y hGreville6 st 10 lb (42.6 kg)Mr DakinMr C. Dublin6/1
4King of the Ring5y hWilliam Wilson8 st 7 lb (54.0 kg) James Wilson James Wilson 5/1
5Break of Day5y hJ. Ryan6 st 5 lb (40.4 kg)Mr J. Coldham7/1
6King Tom5y hSamuel Davis7 st 0 lb (44.5 kg)Mr P. Lewis20/1
7Goldsborough4y hJimmy Ashworth7 st 2 lb (45.4 kg)John TaitJohn Tait2/1 fav.
8Fitz-Yattendon4y hM. Thompson7 st 10 lb (49.0 kg) Hercules Robinson 10/1
9The Arrow5y hH. Grubb8 st 0 lb (50.8 kg)John TaitJohn Tait10/1
10After Dark (late Wait-A-Bit)Aged gWatson7 st 8 lb (48.1 kg) [a] Mr J. Brewer50/1
11Dagworth6y hGeorge Donnelly10 st 0 lb (63.5 kg) Etienne de Mestre Etienne de Mestre 16/1
12Lapidist4y hJohnny Day7 st 11 lb (49.4 kg)William FilgateWilliam Filgate20/1
13Flag of New Zealand.svg Lurline (NZL)5y mR. Mason8 st 11 lb (55.8 kg)Mr J. Watt10/1
N/aSpeculation4y hDuggan7 st 6 lb (47.2 kg) Hercules Robinson 20/1
N/aGoshawk4y hMusgrave7 st 4 lb (46.3 kg)Mr S.P. Winter50/1
N/aGloom4y gJ. Nolan8 st 6 lb (53.5 kg)William FilgateWilliam Filgate20/1
N/aKettledrum4y hCleary6 st 4 lb (39.9 kg)Mr F. Leng50/1
N/aCleolite4y mScrivener5 st 12 lb (37.2 kg)Mr A. Williamson20/1
SCRBlue Peter5y hN/a7 st 7 lb (47.6 kg)Mr J. BrewerN/a
SCRMountaineer4y gN/a7 st 5 lb (46.7 kg)Mr H.J. BowlerN/a
SCRFriendless5y hN/a7 st 0 lb (44.5 kg)Mr J. IliffeN/a

Prizemoney

First prize £1140, second prize £50, third prize £20. [1]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Was supposed to carry 7st 7lb

References

  1. 1 2 3 "1874 Melbourne Cup MillersGuide". millersguide.identika.com.au. Archived from the original on 23 March 2022. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "THE VRC Spring Meeting - The Cup Day". The Argus. Melbourne, Victoria. 5 November 1874. p. 6. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  3. ↑ "Melbourne Races". Evening Journal. Adelaide, South Australia. 2 June 1874. p. 2. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Second (Cup) Day - Thursday, Nov. 5". The Australasian. Melbourne, Victoria. 7 November 1874. pp. 10–11. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 "The Cup Day". The Argus. Melbourne, Victoria. 6 November 1874. pp. 5–6. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  6. 1 2 "News of the Day". The Age. Melbourne, Victoria. 6 November 1874. p. 2. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  7. ↑ "VRC Spring Meeting - The Cup Day, November 5". Australian Town and Country Journal. Sydney, New South Wales. 14 November 1874. pp. 29–30. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  8. ↑ "The Melbourne Cup, 1874". Launceston Examiner. Launceston, Tasmania. 12 November 1874. p. 3. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  9. ↑ "1871 to 1880 Melbourne Cup Winners". races com au. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  10. ↑ Cavanough, Maurice (1978). The Melbourne Cup (8 ed.). p. 445. ISBN   0727004859.
  11. ↑ "Melbourne Cup Winners - 1861-1880". Victoria Racing Club. Retrieved 5 November 2025.


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