 | |
| Industry | Transport |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1870 |
| Defunct | 1974 |
| Successor | Union Company |
| Headquarters | Nelson |
| Products | Sea transport |
The Anchor Shipping and Foundry Company linked Nelson with other parts of New Zealand from 1870 to 1974. The company's former office remains on the quay at Nelson, as do steps of their foundry, which built one of their ships, repaired their fleet and made other machinery.
Anchor had its origins on 5 February 1857, when Nathaniel Edwards and George Bennett formed a partnership as Nathaniel Edwards and Company, to take over the Nelson merchants, Alfred Fell & Co. [1] By 1860 they had become shipping agents. [2] On 3 November 1862 another merchant, John Symons, joined N. Edwards & Co., which had just bought the paddle steamer Lyttelton in October 1862. She replaced the Tasmanian Maid, [3] when on 11 November 1862 she made her first voyage from Nelson to Blenheim, [4] being the first steamship to reach Blenheim town wharf, on the Ōpaoa River. [5] Alexander Brown, her engineer, also joined the company. Lyttelton served Tasman and Golden Bay / Mohua ports, with occasional trips to Wellington. Paddle steamer Charles Edward was bought in 1863. In December 1864, at the start of the West Coast gold rush, Wallabi was bought from Australia, to serve Westport, Greymouth and Hokitika. In 1865 Kennedy also came from Australia, adding occasional trips to Taranaki for cattle. Paddle steamer Nelson was added in 1866. [6] In 1866 Edwards sold his shares to his partners, [7] though he retained the shipping department. A workshop near N. Edwards & Co bulk store at Matangi Awhio/ Auckland Point was created.
By 1870 John Symons had become the sole owner of both the merchant and shipping departments of Nathaniel Edwards & Co and, in August 1870, changed the name of the latter to Anchor Line of Steam Packets, with a new pennant, featuring an anchor, designed by artist, William Cock. [8]
Symons retired in 1878. In December 1880 a partnership was formed under the name Anchor Steam Shipping Company which purchased Anchor's 5 ships, the foundry and Albion Wharf. Forming the partnership were John H Cock & Company (⅓), Sclanders and Company (⅓), P Donald (1/6), and Alexander Brown (1/6). During the 1880s economic depression the foundry remained profitable and Anchor ships continued to serve Nelson, Wellington, New Plymouth, Whanganui, Foxton, Patea, Onehunga and West Coast ports, with trips to Jackson Bay and the Marlborough Sounds on occasions. [6]
Alexander Brown was born at Larkhall, Scotland, probably on 23 February 1830, to Ellen Graham and Thomas Brown, a blacksmith. From 1846 to 1854 he was an apprentice and then engineer at James Gray & Company shipyard. In 1855 he joined Scott Russell's shipyard at Millwall, as an engineer building the Great Eastern. In 1855 he went to the Crimea as 2nd engineer of the transport Pioneer, but returned to Millwall for the launch of the Great Eastern in 1858. He helped build the Lyttelton and steamed with her to New Zealand, leaving England on 18 August 1859; it was intended that he remain in the colony for a year to fit out and then work on her. The wages offered were very attractive: £10 a month for the journey and £20 a month while in New Zealand. On arrival Alexander Brown refitted the Lyttelton as a paddle-steamer, visiting Lyttelton and then Dunedin. During the 1861 goldrush, she took passengers from Dunedin to Taieri. N Edwards & Co purchased the ship in 1862 and used it to trade between Nelson and Blenheim. Brown joined the new owners as chief engineer. In 1866 he accepted a shore appointment in Nelson to supervise repairs and alterations to the company's ships, the start of Anchor Foundry. In 1873 the foundry moved to a new port site. [9] He was also engineer on the Wallabi and Kennedy until 1866. [10] [11] In 1880 Alexander Brown became a major shareholder in the Anchor Steam Shipping Co, which purchased the shipping and foundry assets from the estate of John Symonds. Brown continued as the Anchor Foundry Manager and in 1901 was appointed a Director and Consulting Engineer to the Anchor Shipping & Foundry Company. [8] He visited the foundry daily until a few weeks before his death. His wife, Isabella Brown, died on 9 October 1904. They married in Nelson on 3 August 1868. [9] Although his obituaries, published on 25 January 1913, say he died the day before, following a period of ill health, [10] [11] his death certificate says he died on 22 January. [12] His children were Thomas, John, Irvine, Mrs R. Ward, of Christchurch [10] [11] and Agnes Isabella Ambridge (died 3 July 1943). [13]
His sons and grandsons were apprentices at the Anchor Foundry before qualifying as chief engineers. His eldest son, Thomas, was Foundry Manager from 1901 to 1921 and a company director until he died on 26 May 1943. [8] Thomas Brown, a director of the Anchor Shipping and Foundry Co. Ltd, died at his home in Richardson street on 26 May 1943, aged 72. He was the eldest son of Alexander Brown and served his engineering apprenticeship in the Anchor foundry and then proceeded to England for further experience. For some years he was an engineer in the service of the Union Steam Ship Company, prior to succeeding his father as manager of the Anchor Company’s foundry. He retired from that position in 1920 and then acted as consulting engineer to the company. In 1922 and again in 1926, in company with Mrs Brown, he visited England on the company’s business. In 1922 he superintended the construction of the steamer Titoki on the Clyde, and when returning to New Zealand in 1926 he was a passenger on Aorangi on its maiden voyage. The late Mr Brown was appointed a director of Anchor when it became a limited liability company in March 1901 and he retained that position until his death. He married Helen McRitchie Simpson, who survives him. [14]
John (Jack) Brown was an apprentice in the foundry and until he went to Glasgow for further training. He was 2nd Engineer on the Union’s liner Moana on the Sydney-San Francisco service, until he returned, to Anchor as Chief Engineer for several years, including superintending construction of Alexander in 1902, the first Anchor steamer built in Britain, followed by Waimea, Nikau and Kaitoa in 1909. Mr Brown on this occasion came out as Chief Engineer of the Kaitoa and on arrival here was transferred to the Waimea as Chief Engineer, continuing in that vessel until his retirement from the sea to work in the Foundry. [15] He was a seagoing engineer and Assistant Foundry Manager from 1912 to 1915 when he retired for health reasons. [8] John Wilson Brown, aged 59, died suddenly at 5am on 4 December 1930 at his home, Lark Hall, Richardson Street, Nelson. He was the second son of Alexander Brown and was educated as a marine engineer for Union. For a time he was a manager of Anchor. He was an invalid for several years. He left a widow and 4 daughters—Mrs W. J. Thompson, Mrs L. W. Field, Isabel and Eileen Brown. His sisters Mrs R. B. Ward, of Christchurch, and Mrs Andridge, of Rarotonga survived him. [16]
Alexander Irvine Brown was a seagoing engineer and Superintending Engineer from 1915 until 1944. He remained a Director until his death in 1962. [8] In 1929 their son Alex left Nelson to serve as engineer on various ships. [17] In 1941 their second son, Ivan Graeme, married Joan Mabel Wallace, of Takapuna. [18] In 1937 their daughter, Phyllis Maud, married Harold John Addis, of Auckland. [19]
Thomas Alexander (Alex) Brown, the eldest son of Alexander Brown, like his father and uncles was an engineering apprentice at the Foundry, and was a seagoing engineer until his appointment as Assistant Superintending Engineer in 1938. He remained in this position until his death in 1963. [8]
In 1900 the partnership was replaced by Anchor Shipping & Foundry Company, the main shareholders being John H Cock's son, Joseph Henry Cock, Alexander Brown and his 3 sons, A H Turnbull, and David Sclanders of London. By 1907 there was demand for a nightly passenger/cargo service between Wellington Nelson-Motueka, and a number of vessels were employed, the first being the Tasman, then Nikau and Kaitoa. Union said that, due to the extension of South Island railways, it was arranged on a friendly basis that Anchor would operate the Wellington-Nelson service and Union the Wellington-Picton service. [6] In 1908 [20] Union bought a 50% share in Anchor, using nominees to avoid publicity. [21] From 1921 on, there was friendly co-operation with Union. [8] In 1916 Anchor ran 6 days a week, serving Nelson, Motueka, and Wellington with the twin screw steamers, Waverley 157 tons, Koi 136 tons, Nikau and Kaitoa 304 tons. [22] In 1925 the Arahura was purchased from Union for the daily service until she was replaced by an Australian built vessel Mourilyan renamed Matangi in 1929. In the 1930s and 40s Matangi left Wellington Queens Wharf No.16 at 7.30pm on Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights and Arahura on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, [6] a service begun in August 1909. [21] Puriri was delivered in 1939, but, as a minesweeper, struck a mine in the Hauraki Gulf in May 1941 and sank. She was replaced after the war with a larger Puriri and shortly afterwards with a sister ship, Mamaku, designed to work shallow draft ports such as Māpua and Motueka and operate the Tasman Bay-Onehunga service. [6]
In 1949 Arahura failed her survey and was withdrawn. The 1929 Hualalai came from Honolulu in late October 1949 and was renamed Ngaio, but alterations were needed and the lighthouse tender Matai ran with Matangi until May 1950, when Ngaio made her first run to Nelson. Matangi was withdrawn in 1952 and Ngaio in 1953, when the Wellington – Nelson ferry ended, following increasing losses from 1947/48, when profit was down to £10,051. [23] A daily cargo run continued with Matipo and Pearl Kasper Company vessels Willomee and later Konanda. Konanda was replaced by Anchor's Towai in 1966, but in 1969 the regular service stopped, due to competition from the Cook Strait rail ferries from 1962, which also affected the Onehunga service, which was taken over by Union in 1972. Puriri was sold in 1974, ending 110 years of Anchor. [6]
The office was built on the site of the Customhouse Hotel. [25] The 2-storey Anchor Shipping & Foundry Co Ltd Building was designed by Arthur R. Griffin in 1927. It had a booking office, offices for managers and clerks, a strong-room, bicycle room, coke-fired central heating and steel-framed windows. The floors were covered in Rublino Tiles, a brand of linoleum. The 32 ft (9.8 m) high flat roof could be used to assess approaching weather or vessels. [26] The Historic Places Trust listed the building as Category 2 on 11 November 1982. After Anchor closed, the offices were used by printers and a distillery, [27] before being bought for $1m by Nelson City Council in September 2013. [28] In 2014 the building was assessed as earthquake-prone, with a rating of 22% of New Building Standard. In 2021 a notice was issued requiring seismic strengthening by 23 April 2027. [29]
Anchor gradually succumbed to air, rail and road competition.
A daily freight service was maintained between the two ports in conjunction with Pearl Kasper Shipping Co's Konanda and (from 1955) Anchor's Matipo. [21] Due to the rapid development of air transport after the War, it was decided to acquire only the Ngaio. Matangi was immediately withdrawn for survey. This she failed and she was promptly laid up in Shelley Bay for disposal. Her former consort in the service, Arahura, had failed her survey a year earlier. Coal from the West Coast had always figured large in Anchor's operation and in 1947 placed an order with Henry Robb Ltd. for a twin screw motor ship which became Puriri (1,248grt). Although fitted with a full outfit of cargo gear including a jumbo derrick capable of lifting 20 tons, she was in effect a small collier. Launched on 22 July 1948, she sailed to New Zealand via Australia and arrived in Wellington on 8 January 1949 with 800 tons of Newcastle coal. Much of her life was spent carrying bulk cargoes around the coast, although she did carry general cargo and timber from time to time. Her final years of service saw her engaged full time on the Company's Nelson – Onehunga route carrying general cargo and she was sold out of the fleet in 1974. to the requirements of smaller ports such as Mapua and Motueka especially in regard to length and draught. Launched on 28 July 1949 as Mamaku, she sailed from Leith on 15 October 1949 for Middlesbrough where she loaded a cargo of coke for Auckland, arriving there on 23 December. Mamaku spent most of her life in the general cargo trade between Nelson, Motueka and Onehunga, although she also shipped coal from the West Coast to North Island ports on occasion. After giving good service to the Company, she was sold in 1972 for further trading. [21]
From 1972, management of the fleet was in the hands of Union and in December 1973 the company name was changed to Anchor-Dorman Ltd. to incorporate the interests of Dorman Engineering Co. Ltd. of Nelson, which Union had acquired in 1969. In the early 1980s, Union decided that the Nelson-Onehunga trade should be containerised and the original intention was to give the new ship a traditional Anchor name and operate in their colours. This was not to be and the new ship arrived as Union Nelson in March 1982 with full Union Company colours. Titoki was withdrawn and before Union Nelson even entered service, a new crew was aboard preparing for her departure overseas. With her sale, the Anchor name disappeared forever with the shipping side of the business being renamed Union Maritime Services and the engineering interests were sold to a New Plymouth company on 31 March 1984. [21]
Anchor had a total of 37 ships, 16 being the peak in 1930. It ran until absorbed into Union in 1972. [6] Union Nelson ceased regular calls at Nelson in 1985, due in part to railway competition. [30]
The foundry built and repaired a wide range of machinery. It operated from 1866 to 1986 and was established by N. Edwards & Co. In 1866, a workshop opened near N. Edwards & Co bulk store at Matangi Awhio/Auckland Point. [8] A January 1873 report described the newly-erected workshops on the Port road, as of corrugated iron, 125 feet long, by 25 feet wide. In the centre was a 70ft by 25ft, general workshop, 2 forges, shortly to be added an 8hp steam engine, to work a 5-cwt. steam hammer, lathes, and fans for the blasts of the various furnaces. A 4hp engine driving a boring machine and 2 lathes. At the northern end is the foundry, 25ft x 25ft, and furnace were being erected. [31]
A large new workshop on Wakefield Quay, named The Anchor Foundry, was in use by 1873. By then the Anchor Foundry repaired Anchor's steamers, as well as taking on outside work, such as building other steamers, making gold sluicing equipment, cast iron stoves and a locomotive for the Takaka Tramway Company. The Foundry also served local industries such as Griffin’s biscuits,Samuel Kirkpatrick’s jam and canning factory and Baigent Timber, offering fitting and turning, blacksmithing, moulding and casting, boiler making, electric and acetone welding, pattern making, and electrical wiring and installation. In 1883 Anchor Steam Shipping Co. was formed with the Anchor Line ships, foundry, and shipyard. [8] It became Anchor Shipping & Foundry Co. on 31 March 1901. [21] Anchor Foundry at Port Nelson, erected in 1907, was a long narrow building with an exterior cladding of grey corrugated iron. It extended along the waterfront from the power house building to the then Pier Hotel. When the 1907 building was opened, the overhead drive shaft extended the full length of the building, and was reputed to be the longest single overhead drive shaft in the southern hemisphere. [8] After World War II trade declined, partly because of competition from ferries and the declining use of coal. In 1969 Anchor bought T. Dorman Engineering. Late in 1973 Anchor was wound up by Union, when it bought the remaining 12% of Anchor from the Brown families. A new company Anchor Dorman was formed to take over Union’s interest in Nelson. In 1984 Anchor Dorman was sold to Perry Dines Corporation of New Plymouth, but within two years was liquidated; even the employees received no redundancy payments. The buildings were sold to Nelson Harbour Board and the plant disposed of. The Anchor Foundry buildings on Wakefield Quay were demolished in 2005 and luxury apartments built. The steps at 15 Richardson Street remain. [8]
| Ship | Years | GRT | Built | Notes |
| Lyttelton | 1861-86 | 78 | Scott Russell Millwall | Lyttelton was a 49grt, 25hp condensing, [32] iron, ketch-rigged paddle steamer, 75 feet long, 18 feet wide, 4ft. 6in deep. [33] She left the Thames on 18 August 1859, via Cork, Cape de Verde and Cape Coast Castle, where the captain and many crew went down with fever. At the equator she was becalmed for several weeks, so the paddle-wheels were fitted and everything burnable was used. On reaching port ballast was sold to buy supplies of food and coal. She reached Wellington on 23 November 1860. After refitting, Alexander Brown look her to Lyttelton for the Gabriel's Gully goldrush in 1861, to link Dunedin and Taieri. In 1862 she was bought by Edwards & Co to for Nelson-Blenheim, later becoming part of Anchor. [34] On The Beef Barrels (Kahikatoa), on the approach to French Pass, [35] on 30 September 1886 the ship was wrecked. The captain was found not to be at fault. [36] |
| Charles Edward | 1868-1908 | 89 or 141 | William Denny & Brothers Dumbarton |   In 1876 she was lengthened by 16 ft. [44] or 12, as a schooner rigged paddle steamer. [45] In 1881 she was holed on the rocks at Cape Foulwind and then towed to Westport. [46] She was converted to a twin screw vessel in 1883, which saved space and fuel and increased her speed. [47] In 1900 she was again lengthened slightly, her hold space was enlarged [48] and her clipper bow and figurehead of Bonnie Prince Charlie, [49] were replaced by a raked stem. [50] She was then registered as 145 tons, with a 48hp compound engine. [51] She was wrecked at Whanganui on 16 December 1908, [52] after which she and her cargo of coal were sold for £25. [53] Built for the Otago Steam Ship Company, she was swiftly sold to Australian interests before being the first Anchor ship to visit Onehunga on 3 September 1868, arriving with 97 gold-diggers bound for Thames. [54] |
| Wallabi | 1864–68 | 103 | A & J Inglis Pointhouse |  |
| Kennedy | 1865-1919 | 149 | Australian Steam Navigation Co., Pyrmont, Sydney | She was built of iron in 1864–65 for the Queensland river service, [64] launched in January 1865 from the Patent Slip, rigged as a fore-and-aft 3-masted schooner. She was then 135 feet long, 19 feet wide, 7 feet 3 inches deep, had saloons for 12 men and 6 ladies and a fore-cabin for about 20. Twin screws [65] were driven by two [66] 4-cylinder, inverted, direct action engines, [65] totalling 43hp, [67] fed by a single boiler, [64] driving her at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph). With 150 tons of cargo she drew 4 feet. [65] arrived on 7 October 1865 [68] Originally 149 tons, she was refitted to 174 tons in 1875 (then 138.4 x 19.4 x 7.8), 189 tons in 1886, 193 tons in 1895 and 226 tons in 1904. In 1905 she was converted from a single to a two hatch vessel, by removing her passenger accommodation, and then carried coal, cattle and general cargo. [69] Nathaniel Edwards bought her and she arrived at Nelson on 7 October 1865 with space for 31 saloon passengers and 16 steerage. Throughout her long career she retained her sails. Edwards used her on the Nelson-Hokitika route. [64] On 25 October 1867 a Mōkihinui River flood washed her out into a rough sea with insufficient steam to run the engines. [70] On 11 July 1869 she was stuck on Hokitika bar, [71] unable to leave until 29 July. [72] She was sent on an 8-day trip [73] to Sydney for repair [74] and didn't return until October. [75] In 1883 she collided with Tui at Whanganui, in 1898 with Felicity at Motueka, in 1899 with Dingadee, in 1900 with Taieri at Buller [66] and in 1918 was on Westport Bar, after her coal feed pipe was swept away and the boilers were short on fuel. She got across the bar, but was swept out to sea, until port was made, with an engine room half full of water and injuries to the mate, second engineer and a sailor. [64]  |
| Nelson | 1866–68 | 124 | Backhouse & Dixon, Middlesborough | Paddle steamer built in 1863 to order of Trustees of Nelson Trust Fund and leased to Nelson & Marlborough Coast Steam Navigation Company Limited 1864–65. [80] The first steamer on the New Zealand coast. March 1854 arrived after a 108-day passage from London under sail. Ran a subsidised service linking Auckland, Nelson, Wellington, Lyttelton and Dunedin. [81] April 1865, stranded Hokitika Bar. Reconditioned and leased to a partnership of 6 men. 27 September 1865, stranded North Spit, Greymouth. Sold to Kilgour Bros, Greymouth, who refloated her. Sold to N Edwards & Co. in 1866. Wrecked West Wanganui 12 October 1868. [80] Designed by Richardson, Duck and Co., Stockton-on-Tees. Length, 125 fret; breadth, 17 feet 6 inches: depth, 8 feet. She lay for a time at Middlesborough as her speed trials were unsatisfactory; but on a trial trip on 12 December 1863 reached 13 kn (24 km/h; 15 mph). [82] However on her first speed trial at Nelson she only just exceeded 9mph. [83] |
| Murray | 1871–95 | 81 | Thomas B Seath & Co, Rutherglen | Murray, recently built by Thomas Seath, at Rutherglen, as a screw-steamer, sailed from the South Quay for Adelaide. She was not much longer than the steamer which tugged her down the river, and did not stand so high above the water. The engines had been taken out of her and the screw unshipped, that she might be converted into a sailing vessel, with three low masts. Her tonnage, we are informed, would not exceed 150 tons, and she is intended for inland or coast navigation when she reaches her destination. A similar vessel, of Mr. Seath's building, was sent out to Australia, some years ago, and made the voyage with the utmost safety and success. [84] Single screw steamer built in 1859 for J Winsop, Glasgow as the Cromwell and first registered on 28 February 1861, after which she had a deckhouse added and was altered to a cargo ship named Murray with 30nhp engine. By1870 18nhp, 1887 re-engined by Anchor with 1884 C2cyl 12"24"x15" 25nhp. In the next 5 years she had a series of owners in Glasgow, Rothesay, Adelaide and Sydney, before being bought by Joseph Paul, Nelson 1866. 1871 Joseph Kilgour (Anchor) carrying mails from Nelson to Westport, Greymouth and Hokitika. 9/1895 William Pollock, Moruya, Sydney, c1905 Alexander Kethel, Sydney, c1913 Evan Jones, Sydney, c1916 Ernest A Wells, Sydney. 1861 D – 59nrt, by 1867 78nrt; by1870 56nrt, by 1875 114grt 78nrt 117.0 x 16.4 x 7.8ft; 1887 144grt 90nrt 122.5 x 16.3 x 9.4ft [85] Owned by George Johnson, South Australia, 1859–62, J Broomfield, Sydney, 1863–67, J Paul, Nelson, 1867–71. (Converted to sail 1864 and re-engined 1867. Lengthend 1873 and tonnage increased to 114 tons). In Anchor fleet 1871–95. W Pollock, Sydney, 1896-04, P S Ashbury, Sydney, 1904–05, A Kethel & Partners, Sydney, 1905–13, E & S Jones & Partners, Sydney, 1913–17, Waugh & Johnson, Sydney, 1917. Converted to hulk 1917 at Sydney, and sunk at moorings. [86] |
| Wallace | 1872–85 | 89 | Wilson & Sparrow, Otago Foundry, Dunedin |  She was bought by N Edwards & Co in June 1872, at about the same time as Murray. [91] In 1884, following success with the Charles Edward the previous year, she was converted at the foundry, to a single screw, driven by a compound engine. [92] She was laid up in December 1883 [93] was being converted in June [94] and returned to service on 3 November, when she was reported to be faster and her coal consumption reduced from 10 to 4 tons a day. [95] Wrecked at Greymouth on 14 October 1885, where she was holed and became a total wreck, [96] on a wall beside the railway. [97] |
| Ocean Bird | 1873 | Ketch. [31] | ||
| Waverley | 1887-16 | 125 | Bailey & Seager Freemans Bay, Auckland | Waverley was a schooner rigged, twin screw, steamer, built in 1883 for Patea Steam Shipping Company for £5,700 to carry cargo and 42 passengers. She was 93 feet, 7 inches x 18 feet, 2 inches x 8 feet, 4 inches, with twin 25 h.p. engines. The saloon and smoking room were panelled in oak and maple, with crimson velvet upholstery. She arrived at Patea on 23 May 1883. On 9 July 1886 Anchor bought her for £3,300 to replace Wallace, serving Wellington, Nelson, Westport, Greymouth, Picton, Foxton, Wanganui and Patea, where she was stranded on 8 December 1887 [98] (refloated 13 January) [99] and 26 August 1896. [100] 1897 lengthened by 18 feet, 5 inches and refitted to 157 tons. 1901 used on the overnight Nelson-Wellington service. April 1916 sold to Patea Farmers' Co-operative Freezing Company. She had insulated holds. She was again stranded at Patea in November 1917, February 1919, April and October 1921 and April 1925. After dismantling at Wellington, she was towed by Wairau on 14 June 1928 to the Wairua River, where she was to form a breakwater, but was swept up the channel in a flood [101] to the Wairau Lagoons (2km south of Kennedy) [102] and remains, despite being used for target practice by the army, [101] as a feature on a walkway. [103] |
| Aorere | 1889–96 | 73 | David Gilbertson, Nelson |  |
| Alexander | 1903–50 | 377 | Mackie & Thompson, Govan |   |
| Lily | 1905–06 | 29 | Sims & Brown, Auckland |  |
| Koi | 1906–30 | 124 or 136 tons. [22] | Anchor Foundry, Nelson with parts from John Shearer, Scotstoun |  |
| Tasman | 1907–08 | 179 | Robert Logan Snr., Auckland |  |
| Waimea | 1909–28 | 454 | Mackie & Thompson, Govan | Waimea was a 150.6 ft x 26.0 ft x 9.9 ft steel steamer, launched on 25 January 1909, with a 2-screw, 2xT3Cyl (11, 17 & 28 – 21)in. 100RHP engine by Ross & Duncan, Glasgow. She was built for Anchor, but chartered to Union in 1927 [144] and transferred in 1928, Anchor in 1936 and Union in 1939 to recover her boiler. [145] Speed 9 kn (17 km/h; 10 mph) 9 September 1927: Lost a propeller off Portland Island. 22 February 1932: Involved in a collision with the Maui Pomare at Auckland. 25 January 1939: Stranded at Golden Bay. 31 May 1939: Left Nelson in tow of the Kaitoa for Wellington. 8 August 1939: Her boiler was removed and fitted into Wingatui. Her hull was later scuttled off Turakirae Head, Cook Strait. [146] |
| Nikau | 1909–54 | 248 | Mackie & Thompson, Govan |  In 1954 she ran for NSS for a short time, before being sold for work in the Pacific, where she was wrecked on South Tanna Is, Vanuatu 1964. [148] 120.2 x 22.1 x 7.3 |
| Kaitoa | 1909–50 | 304 | Mackie & Thompson, Govan | Withdrawn 1949. [121] |
| Regulus | 1913–35 | 584 | England |  |
| Ngaio | 1921–35 | 1203 | William Denny Dumbarton |  As Mapourika she was launched on 7 May 1898, handed over on 27 June 1898 and cost Union £34,553 for their Wellington/Nelson/Westport/Greymouth service. On 1 October 1898 she went ashore at Greymouth breakwater. Nearly 100 men spent 4 months to re-launch her on 10 March 1899. In December 1899 she was transferred to the Wellington/Lyttelton service. Other incidents were being aground off Picton on 23 August 1900, damaged off Pencarrow on 28 April 1901, stranded at French Pass on 2 January 1902 and being grounded at Nelson on 17 January and 3 December 1904, 11 August 1906 and at Shag Port Otago on 6 November 1905. On 19 June 1908 she collided with Ingrid at Westport and on 11 March 1911 with Pateena at Nelson. On 30 August 1916 she sprang a leak in Blind Bay and on 1 August 1930 hit Wellington quay. In 1918 she was transferred to the Wellington/Picton/Nelson service and in 1921 sold to Anchor and renamed Ngaio. Her service ended in 1935 and she was broken up at Nelson by Jackson & Co in 1936. [150] |
| Titoki | 1922–58 | 625 | Scotland |  Titoki was replaced by another Titoki in 1958 (see below). |
| Mayflower | 1922–29 | 124 | Tomakin | Former Union coal hulk at Wellington moved to Nelson. [151] She was broken up in 1929. [152] |
| Sea Scout | 1925–32 | 128 | Huon River | Bought training ship for a coal hulk at Nelson. [153] Sold for firewood. [154] |
| Orepuki | 1925–36 | 536 | Goole Shipbuilding & Repairing Co Ltd |  |
| Opua | 1925–26 | 575 | A & J Inglis Pointhouse |  |
| Arahura | 1925–50 | 1596 | William Denny Dumbarton |  |
| Totara | 1926–55 | 421 | Hull |  |
| Te Aroha | 1928–33 | 105 | Auckland | A scow, which replaced Koi on Collingwood route [132] in March 1928. [165] |
| Rata | 1929–58 | 974 | Bow, McLachlan Paisley [166] |   Used as a minesweeper. [167] Built 1929 by Bow, McLachlan & Company Limited, Paisley. 1958 sold to Lanena Shipping Company, Hong Kong. Towed from Nelson to Hong Kong by tug Cabrilla and broken up 1959. [166] |
| Motu | −49 | Hulk. Withdrawn 1949. [121] | ||
| Matangi | 1929–52 | 1,366 | Alexander Stephen & Sons, Linthouse |  |
| Taupata | 1930–49 | 268 | George Niccol Auckland [174] | Taupata was built of kauri, sheathed with totara and had a keel protected by ironbark. She was launched on 28 October 1930, had two masts, two diesel engines of 140 h.p. each, which could drive her at over 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph), and a hold of about 350 tons capacity, with two hatches. Anchor used her to carry fruit from Motueka, Mapua and Nelson to Wellington, as she had only an 8 ft (2.4 m) draught. She was 130 ft. long and 26ft. 6in wide. [175] |
| Himatangi | 1930–36 | 479 | Ardrossan Dry Dock & Shipbuilding Company |   However, in September 1931 Himatangi was laid up at Wellington, [182] until towed to Sydney by the trawler Elsie Cam [183] and sold in 1936 to North Wallarah Colliery, then to Cam & Sons, Sydney and renamed Coolebar in 1937, to NCSN in 1938, [182] used as a minesweeper during World War II, [184] sold to China in 1947 and renamed East River. She was then arrested for debt at Newcastle and her name again reverted to Coolebar, but she was laid up and sank at her mooring on 25 September 1949. In 1958 she was raised in sections and melted down by Broken Hill Pty. [182] |
| Puriri | 1938–41 | 927 | Henry Robb, Leith |  |
| Hokitika | 1941–42 | 205 | John McGregor Dunedin | Built in 1916 for NSS and named Waipu, she was converted to a motor ship [188] and renamed Hokitika in 1936, when bought by Eclipse Shipping Co, a KDV Box Company subsidiary, to bring timber from Bruce Bay to Foxton, and continued until sold to Anchor on 16 October 1941. Hokitika was the last ship to serve Foxton. She was taken a year later [69] for use in the Pacific with the US Navy. In 1945 she was sold to Aspden Shipping Co. Ltd, Auckland as a cement carrier, in 1954 to E. Savoie of Noumea and renamed Colorado Del Mar, then to Establisements Ballande, Santu, New Hebrides and renamed Havannah. In 1959 she went to Wide Bay Syndicate, Maryborough, in 1960 to Blue Pacific Charter, Brisbane (renamed Blue Pacific) and in 1965 to H.C. Williams of Rarotonga and again named Havannah. [188] |
| Puriri | 1948–74 | 1248 | Henry Robb, Leith |    Length: 212' 6" Breadth: 40' 10" Draught: 12' 7". Launched on 22 July 1948, she arrived at Wellington on 8 January 1949 and on 12 February 1959 took her first load of cement from NZ Cement Company at Cape Foulwind to Gisborne and Napier. In April 1974 she was laid up at Nelson, then sold to Maldives Shipping Corporation, Malé and renamed Maldive Pilot. Next year she was sold to Power Shipping (Pte) Ltd., Singapore and renamed Yellow River and scrapped by Ya Chou Steel Manufacturing, Kaohsiung after 16 December 1979. [21] |
| Mamaku | 1949–72 | 927 | Henry Robb, Leith | Mamaku replaced Alexander. [120] Length: 186' 6" Breadth: 37' 10" Draught: 12' 3" She was launched on 28 July 1949 and reached Auckland on 23 December 1949. In 1972 she was sold to Pacific Islands Transport Ltd., Port Vila, in 1973 to J.C. Jean-Louis, Port Vila and renamed Mamatu, then Mamani by Hiap Seng Shipping & Trading, Singapore, Thani by Kean Leelathan, Bangkok in 1979, Kai by Hai Soon in 1982 and Union 2, then Haydai in 1986, before being broken up that year. [21] |
| Ngaio | 1950–55 | 3566 | USA | Inter-Island Steam, of Honolulu, [6] sold their 1929 Hualalai to Anchor in 1949. She arrived in Wellington on 29 October 1949, when it was realised that she required substantial alteration and would not be ready for Christmas. She was renamed Ngaio and made her first Wellington to Nelson trip on 22 May 1950. [21] |
| Matipo | 1954–68 | 398 | Holland | Further replacemens were needed, so Zephyr II was chartered for a year, until the 1953 Dutch built coaster, Birgitte Basse, reached Wellington on 8 January 1955 and was renamed Matipo. She ran between Nelson and Wellington, until rail ferry competition reduced it to a one ship trade on 29 January 1968, when she was sold. [21] |
| Towai | 1954–69 | 565 | Ships built at James Pollock & Sons, Faversham | Matipo was closely followed by the Purple Emperor, which reached Wellington on 16 January 1955. By March she was refitted, renamed Towai and her first cargo was fruit from Māpua and Motueka for Wellington. In December 1966 she took over the Nelson – Wellington service from Konanda until it ended in March 1969, when she was sold. [21] Length: 180' 0" Breadth: 30' 1" Draught: 10' 9" Originally laid down as Sea Hurricane, in 1945 for the Royal Navy, but cancelled in 1946, sold to E.J.& W. Goldsmith Ltd., London in 1948 and completed in April 1949 as Golden Hind. In 1952 she was sold to Coastal Tankers Ltd., London and renamed Purple Emperor. In September 1954 Anchor bought her. In April 1969 she was sold to Coastal Tug & Barge Pty Ltd., Port Moresby and renamed Akana, then to Sea Freight Pty Ltd., Port Moresby in 1974, Ali Ahamed, Malé in 1977 and renamed Mina Maaree. and to D. Ibrahim Kaleyfaanui, Malé and renamed Maafahi in 1979. In late 1983 she was scuttled off Malé. [189] |
| Totara | 1957–72 | 855 | E.J. Smit & Zoon, Westerbroek | Totara was a collier, carrying about 850 tons. She loaded sodium sulphate at Rotterdam, left Dover on 8 April 1957 and arrived at Auckland on 25 May. In June 1975 she took over the Nelson-Onehunga cargo route, replacing Pukeko. Length: 218' 0" Breadth: 34' 5" Draught: 12' 6" In April 1978 she was sold to Pacific Navigation, Singapore and renamed Pacific Bold, in 1987 to Island Enterprises Pte Ltd., Malé and renamed Antares, in 1990 to Island Trade & Travel Pte Ltd., Malé and renamed Sygnus and in 1991 to Maahal Enterprise Ltd., Maldives and renamed Riviheli. In April 2000: she was sold to shipbreakers in Mumbai. [21] |
| Titoki | 1958–72 | 855 | E.J. Smit & Zoon, Westerbroek |  |
Ships were painted salmon pink to the water line, with a black hull, the super-structure finished in white and the funnel white, topped in black. [64] [190]
The Buller River is a river in the South Island of New Zealand. The Buller has the highest flow of any river in the country during floods, though it is only the 13th longest river; it runs for 177 km (110 mi) from Lake Rotoiti through the Buller Gorge and into the Tasman Sea near the town of Westport. A saddle at 710 m (2,330 ft) separates the Buller from the Motupiko River and that is divided from the Wairau River by a 695 m (2,280 ft) saddle, both aligned along the Alpine Fault, as is the top of the Buller valley.
Viaduct Harbour, formerly known as Viaduct Basin, is a former commercial harbour on the Auckland waterfront that has been turned into a development of mostly upscale apartments, office space and restaurants. It is located on the site of a formerly run-down area of the Freemans Bay / Auckland CBD waterfront in Auckland, New Zealand. As a centre of activity of the 2000 America's Cup hosted by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, as well as the 2022 Rally New Zealand, the precinct enjoyed considerable popularity with locals and foreign visitors.
The Stillwater Ngākawau Line (SNL), formerly the Stillwater–Westport Line (SWL) and the Ngakawau Branch, is a secondary main line, part of New Zealand's national rail network. It runs between Stillwater and Ngakawau via Westport on the West Coast of the South Island. It was one of the longest construction projects in New Zealand's history, with its first section, at the south end, opened in 1889, and the beginnings of the Ngākawau Branch, at its Westport end, in 1875. The full line was completed in 1942. The only slower railway projects were Palmerston North to Gisborne, 1872 to 1942, and the Main North Line to Picton, 1872 to 1945.
Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand Limited was once the biggest shipping line in the southern hemisphere and New Zealand's largest private-sector employer. It was incorporated by James Mills in Dunedin in 1875 with the backing of a Scottish shipbuilder, Peter Denny. Bought by shipping giant P&O around the time of World War I it was sold in 1972 to an Australasian consortium and closed at the end of the twentieth century.
TSS Arahura was a twin screw steam passenger/cargo ship built for the Union Steam Ship Company. It was launched on the Clyde on 25 March 1905 and built by William Denny and Brothers Dumbarton at a cost of £52,000. It had a gross weight of 1,607 tons. The ship had accommodation for 201 passengers.
Henry Niccol was probably the first shipbuilder in Auckland, New Zealand. He was born in 1819 in Greenock. He was the father of George Turnbull Niccol and Malcolm Niccol (1844-1925).
George Fraser was a New Zealand engineer, foundry proprietor and ship owner. He was born in Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland on 28 June 1832.
HMAS Bingera was an auxiliary anti-submarine vessel of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) during the Second World War. Bingera was built by William Denny and Brothers, Dumbarton in 1935 for the Australasian United Steam Navigation Company for the Queensland coastal trade, arriving at Brisbane on 18 November 1935.
The Northern Steam Ship Company Ltd (NSS) served the northern half of the North Island of New Zealand from 1881 to 1974. Its headquarters, the Northern Steam Ship Company Building, remains in use on Quay St, Auckland as a bar.
Fitzroy Bay is a bay close to the entrance of Wellington Harbour in New Zealand. It lies to the southeast of the entrance to the harbour, between Pencarrow Head and Baring Head. Lake Kohangatera drains into the bay through Gollans Stream.
SS Hilonian was a general passenger and cargo steamer, built as the Triumph in 1880 at Middlesbrough for McIntyre & Co, and later fitted with refrigeration equipment and leased to Shaw Savill and the New Zealand Shipping Company. She sank and ran aground many times, the final sinking being by torpedo in 1917.
SS Rotomahana was an 1876 harbour steamer and the first iron vessel to be built in Auckland, though launched only 28 minutes ahead of another, though smaller, iron ship. Rotomahana was a name used by at least two other ships of the era, presumably because Rotomahana and its Pink and White Terraces had become better known after the Duke of Edinburgh visited in 1870.
Phoenix Foundry, often printed as Phœnix, was an engineering company in Auckland from 1861 to 1952. By 1900 it was on the verge of bankruptcy, but also Auckland's largest engineering works, supplying a wide range of goods and often leading in the design of equipment used to exploit the country's resources, such as timber and flax mills, crushers for gold ore and locomotives, pumps, cement and gas works and steamers. The foundry started with engineer, George Fraser, and a handful of employees, but grew to employ hundreds and operated under several names, including Fraser and Tinne and George Fraser & Sons Ltd.
PS Governor Wynyard, was a small steam ship, the first to be built in New Zealand, and was launched in 1851. She was a paddle steamer schooner, built of pohutukawa, with kauri planks. In 1853 she left her Tamaki River service in Auckland and was sold in Melbourne in 1852 during the gold rush, but was soon serving as a ferry in Tasmania, until she had her primitive engines removed in 1858. She sprang a leak and became a beached wreck in 1873.
SS Tauranga was the first coastal trading steam ship to be built in New Zealand, though a harbour steamer, Governor Wynyard, had been built at Auckland in 1851.
SS Go Ahead was a twin screw-steamer, launched on the afternoon of Saturday 20 April 1867 by Seath and Connell, of Rutherglen, for the Clyde Shipping Company, with a plan to use her in New Zealand coastal trading. She had 30, or 35 hp (26 kW), high pressure engines, and tubular boilers from Campbell & Son's foundry.
Holm & Co were ship owners, ship brokers and stevedores based in Wellington, New Zealand. They were agents for Australian and other foreign airways and shipping lines.
SS Wiltshire was a passenger ship built for the Federal Steam Navigation Company by John Brown's of Clydebank in 1912 to run between Britain, Australia and New Zealand. She was wrecked when she ran aground in 1922.
William Hoile Brown was a shipbuilder in Auckland from 1864 to 1918 and a local politician.
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