[4] He was largely responsible for the erection of a much larger grandstand, facetiously dubbed "Bagot's cowshed",[6] at Flemington Racecourse.
He filled in the swampy ground at the centre of the course and had it grassed, creating "The Flat", and persuaded the committee to purchase the rising property adjacent, which became "The Hill", both now celebrated features of Australia's premier racecourse.
He has been credited with persuading the Victorian Government to declare Cup Day a bank holiday in lieu of the Prince of Wales's Birthday,[5]which fell on 9 November.
[7] Transparently even-handed, in all the years he was a VRC official, he never made a wager[8] and was not interested in horse racing as a sport.
Charles Hervey Bagot (1788–1880), Irish-born pastoralist in South Australia, who had a large and influential family, was not clearly related.