 | |
| Location | Staithes Road, Hedon, East Riding of Yorkshire, England |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 53°44′46″N0°13′29″W / 53.74611°N 0.22472°W |
| Tenants | |
| Hull Angels (1948-1949) | |
Hedon Stadium was a motorcycle speedway venue between Hedon and Hull, England. [1] The location of the stadium was south of the Hedon Racecourse railway station, which is on the east side of the Staithes Road, about 5 miles from the centre of Hull and 1 mile west of Hedon.
The site started life as Hedon Park Racecourse in 1888 before closing in 1909 [2] and becoming Hedon Aerodrome and later a wartime depot. [3] [1] After the Second World War the Hull Corporation Airfield Company was wound up by the council, who then abandoned the aerodrome in 1951. [4]
Meanwhile, in 1948, part of the site became a venue for speedway at the cost of £1,400 to the city but was rented out to the Hull Angels speedway team for £600 per year. The council also gave the go-ahead for greyhound racing, which at the time was the most lucrative sport in Britain, eclipsing association football revenue around the country. [5] The Hedon Racecourse railway station was renamed Hedon Halt railway station on 14 Auguist 1948, ready for the speedway attendances. [6]
The Hull Angels, promoted by Hull Speedways Ltd, built a 459 yards track before it was shortened the following year to 443 yards. [1] The team competed in the 1948 Speedway National League Division Three [7] and had an official opening on 27 March 1948 in front of 6,000 people. [8] The ceremony was conducted by Mayor and Mayoress of Hedon. [1]
The following season the speedway returned and on 21 May 1949, the stadium held its most significant event to date, a qualifying round of the 1949 Individual Speedway World Championship. [9] Despite the promising start to 1949, matters began to worsen. The greyhound racing never materialised and the speedway attendances were being affected by the remote location of the track. The speedway manager Capt. Fred Archer also announced that the club were losing money.
On 27 August, the Hull Angels raced their last match at home to Liverpool Chads and then after one more away match they withdrew from the league to be replaced by Swindon Robins. [10] [11] The speedway promotion applied, without success, to Hull City FC to see if they could use their old Anlaby Road ground. [12]
Hedon is a town and civil parish in Holderness in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately 5 miles (8 km) east of Hull city centre. It lies to the north of the A1033 road at the crossroads of the B1240 and B1362 roads. It is particularly noted for the parish church of St. Augustine, known as the 'King of Holderness', which is a Grade I listed building.
Walthamstow Stadium was a greyhound racing track in the London Borough of Waltham Forest in east London. It was regarded as the leading greyhound racing stadium in Britain following the closure of White City in 1984. The stadium closed on 16 August 2008.
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The Hull Vikings were a speedway team from Hull, England, who operated from 1971 to 2005, primarily from The Boulevard (stadium) and Craven Park.
Hedon Racecourse railway station is a disused railway station on the North Eastern Railway's Hull and Holderness Railway to the west of Hedon in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It was opened by the North Eastern Railway on 24 August 1888 to serve the newly opened Hedon Park Racecourse. The station was not timetabled and only operated on race days. The station was closed in 1909 when horse racing was terminated.
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Carntyne Stadium was a multi-sports stadium situated in the Carntyne area of Glasgow, Scotland, used mainly for greyhound racing and speedway.
Kings Heath Stadium was a greyhound racing track in Birmingham.
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Burnley Greyhound Stadium also known as Towneley Stadium was a former greyhound racing and speedway stadium in Burnley, Lancashire.
Wakefield Greyhound Stadium was a greyhound racing stadium in Wakefield, West Yorkshire.
Hedon Aerodrome, was an airfield located 6 miles (9.7 km) east of Kingston upon Hull in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The airfield was in operation intermittently between 1912 and the late 1950s both in a civilian and a military capacity. It was rejected as a Second World War airfield due to its proximity to the Salt End chemical works and oil tanks.
Greenford Park Trotting Track was a trotting track, motorcycle speedway and short-lived greyhound racing track in Greenford, London Borough of Ealing, West London.