[1] Europeans in search of grazing land for sheep first explored the Burnett in the early 1840s and the town of Gayndah was founded in 1849 to serve pastoral stations in the district.
Gayndah developed as an administrative centre, having a court house and police station in the 1850s, soon followed a school, post office and bank.
By the late 19th century, cattle had replaced sheep on the surrounding pastoral properties and citrus orchards had been successfully established.
[1] A meeting was held at the Royal Hotel, Gayndah in July 1858 to mount a petition to Sir William Denison, Governor of New South Wales (the separation of Queensland did not occur until 1859), to grant the Crown Land on which the track was situated for use as a racecourse on the grounds that the town had not been granted a recreation reserve and there was no other course closer than Ipswich, 230 miles (370 km) away.
[1] As the land on which the track was located was in an area intended to serve as future suburban allotments, the government was at first inclined to refuse the request and on 6 May 1859 asked for guidance from the Surveyor General's office.
A report of 25 August 1859 recommended that as town development was in fact taking place away from this area, a reserve of between 100 and 120 acres (40 and 49 ha) should be granted for a racecourse.
Trustees were Berkely Basil Moreton, Alpin Grant Cameron, Robert Wilkin Smith, Gilbert William Eliott and Francis Glynn Connolly.
In Queensland, horse racing was one of the earliest organised sports following the opening of the Moreton Bay District for free settlement.
This is a classic race for three-year-olds run over one and a half miles and was first held in 1780 at Epsom in England, being named for the 12th Earl of Derby.
[1] The race meetings were gala events attended by people from the surrounding district and from as far afield as Port Curtis, Ipswich and Nanango.
Horses came from as far away as Sydney to compete and Gayndah considered itself the racing centre of Queensland, even after the Derby had moved to Brisbane.
[1] In 1914 the racecourse land was gazetted as a reserve under Trustees led by the Mayor of Gayndah and on 29 October 1937 a special meeting was held by the Council to formulate by-laws.
[1] The track itself occupies most of the space and is enclosed on either side by a fence of metal posts with a white painted top rail.
Bougainvilleas are planted along the edge of the track in this area and to the north of the tower is a set of parallel rails coloured red, yellow and blue for the winning horses.
The facilities closest to the track include a clubhouse and betting ring, bars, a ladies' room and a tearoom and kitchen.
As a horseracing track, established in the 1850s during the first phase of free European settlement in Queensland, the Gayndah Racecourse is evidence for the importance and early development of the sport.