City and Suburban Handicap

The City and Suburban Handicap and its companion race, the Great Metropolitan Handicap, were devised by London hosteler Samuel Powell Beeton who owned The Dolphin in Cheapside. The establishment was well known for gambling and was dubbed "the Tattersalls of the east end" by the racing public. In 1846 Beeton and a collection of other tavern owners (known collectively as the "Licensed Victuallers of London") raised £300 to establish a purse for the first running of the Great Metropolitan Handicap. The race was popular with the city betting houses and by 1851 Beeton had raised additional money by drafting subscriptions from both city and suburban gambling houses to establish a second race on Epsom Downs, the City and Suburban. The caliber of entries has declined in recent years and the City and Suburban is currently not a graded stakes race. In 1916 during World War I, turf activities at Epsom were curtailed and many of the spring races were run elsewhere. The equivalent of the City and Suburban, dubbed the "Suburban" Handicap was run at Lingfield Park in June and was won by Lord Carnarvon's colt Julian. and did not resume until the summer of 1946. The City and Suburban was reinstated at Epsom on 5 August 1946 to allow time for the course to be refurbished after the long hiatus. ==Winners==