The institutionalisation of the sporting activities in our country began with the growth of international commerce, the construction of the railways by the English, and the growing number of British nationals that arrived at the shore of the River Plate.

It was then that the first sporting clubs were founded, clubs that imitated the successful institutions that already existed in England, and the sports that were played there: cricket, football, rugby, polo, golf, bat fives, racquets, tennis, bowls, shooting, riding, fox hunting and horse racing, among others.

John Ravenscroft, an Englishman that had been working on the development of the estancia “Tres Cueros” in Puán, had the idea of bringing together all the British subjects that lived in Buenos Aires so that they could meet socially and practice every type of imaginable sport within one institution.  His idea was to model the Club on the much respected Hurlingham Club in London which had been founded in 1869 and which was, at that time, the governing body of polo worldwide.

In 1886 he tried, unsuccessfully, to obtain the support of the “Buenos Aires Cricket Club”. According to the official records, at a Board meeting that was held on 17 April 1886, the Directors considered a proposal made by John Ravenscroft.  After a lengthy discussion they decided that they did not see sufficient reason to change the present locale of the club and arranged to “…convey this resolution to the gentlemen interested in the formation of the Hurlingham Club…”   

Two years later, John Ravenscroft managed to secure sufficient support to put his dream into practice without the assistance of another institution.  In addition to contributing money from his own pocket, he received financial support from John Dawson Campbell, Walter Dawson Campbell, Hugh Scott Robson, David Methven, John Ravenscroft himself, and shortly afterwards, the two John Drysdales.

At that time, the “Compañía Ferrocarril de Buenos Aires al Pacífico”, known as “The Pacific Railway” (today Línea San Martín), extended its lines 107 Km. to join Palermo with Mercedes in the interior of the province of Buenos Aires.  The new line passed close to a farm owned by Hugh Scott Robson, which would be very important when the time came to decide where the Club would be situated.

John Ravenscroft’s original intention had been to locate the club in Belgrano, but word got round the landowners in that area and prices rose out of all proportion.  The possibility was also investigated in Flores, Chacarita de los Colegiales, Villa Devoto and Vicente López. Finally Mr. Hill the General Manager of the “Pacific Railway” and a keen cricket player, advised Ravenscroft that his firm (of British capital), would support the venture if the club were to be built close to the new railway line.  This inclined the balance in favour of Scott Robson’s land, a remote farm that was very difficult to get to, but which was situated very close to the new railway lines.

On 6 October 1888, a meeting was held to draw up the Legal Statutes. The following were present: John Campbell, John Drysdale jr., John Ravenscroft, John Drysdale, Hugh Scott Robson, B.W. Gardom, David Methven and, as Substitute members: Edward Casey, Alexander Hume and David Bankier.  These Statutes were subsequently presented to the Government for approval. On the 22nd of November that year, the President, Dr. Miguel Juarez Celman signed and approved the Statutes.

The first meeting of the S. A. Hurlingham Club took place on the 1st of April 1889, the object being to accept the subscription of 124 shares.  Three days later, the members met again, this time to designate the first Board of Directors and to accept Hugh Scott Robson’s offer to sell 337.479,32 m2 of open farmland for the sum of $ 40,000.  This was a dairy farm located in a place called “La Estanzuela”, strategically situated close to the rails of the Pacific Railway, and a few metres from the recently constructed “rural tramway” which had been built by the Lacroze brothers to haul freight.

The place was barren and desolate.  Other than the occasional hut, the only building in miles around was a house belonging to the Pereyra family and a store belonging to Nicolás E. Macchiavello.  There were no automobiles, highways, or roads, just a few mud paths and tracks, and the most reliable way to get to the Club was on horseback.

The usual way of getting to the club was to ride from Flores, through Floresta, Liniers and Ramos Mejía.  From there, across open farmland to the rails of the tramway, and then follow the rails to the Club. The journey was not easy because one had to cross open country, marshes, swamps, mires and even a shooting range, which added adventure and a touch of danger to the discomfort of the ride!

The Lacroze “rural tramway” was drawn by mules, had been built to haul freight and ran once a day. The first section between Chacarita and Luján had been inaugurated on 6th April 1888.  However, it was not used much because it was slow and suffered unpredictable delays due to the loading and unloading of freight during the journey.

The Hurlingham train station on the Pacific Railway did not exist, and in the early years it was customary for Club members to stand on the side of the line and signal the train drivers.  Although this was not according to regulations, the train drivers, with the apparent approval of the managers, would stop the trains to pick up the passengers.