The establishment of the Perak Turf Club at Taiping was the idea of Sir Frank Swettenham, who was passionate about horse racing.

The present course is at Waterfall Road, Taiping, which is 7 furlongs in length.

There was an old course, situated about three miles away from Taiping, at which the current races were then run.

In 1886, Burma ponies provided most of the racing and the meetings were primarily social functions.

Birch, a racing enthusiast, would travel to distant Turf Clubs just to join the major tournament, and was crucial to developing racing interest in the area.