Willows Park

Victoria BC

1/2 Mile Dirt Oval

No Remains Exist

Opened - 1912

Closed - 1940s?

Home of the first organized auto racing on Vancouver Island. The track was cut sometime in the 1880's when horse racing was moved from Beacon Hill Park in Victoria out to Oak Bay. It was known as Victoria Driving Park until the facility was expanded to host the agricultural fair and the fairgrounds were named Willows Park or Willows Fairgrounds. Not to be confused with the present day Willows Park/Beach. Crowds were huge in the early years for auto racing (1900's), and the track promoted alternating weekends of car and horse racing. The track was closed sometime in the late 1930s or early 1940's when Colwood and Langford Speedways were opened outside the city. The property sat derelict until the early 50s when new housing was built on top of the fairgrounds as the city expanded. Present day Carnarvon Park is the only remaining undeveloped peice of the old fairgrounds and the race track would have passed thru the back of the park.