Several weeks ago I was contacted by Marlene Kendon, the great niece of Leo Swales (& Joseph Swales), now to the naive amongst us (thats me) in the early 1900’s the Swales were prolific owners of yachts & motor launches. Seems they changed vessels at least every two years. Some of the kin were even boatbuilders.
Marlene had in her possession two Swales photos albums, now I was interested, but when I mentioned the albums to Harold Kidd he instructed me to be VERY interested 🙂
I now have the albums & will be reviewing them with Harold & sharing with you all.
Amongst the collection were two loose photos of Linda – the 1927 Colin Wild launch that was almost destroyed by fire in the mid 1980’s & rescued by Robert & Russell Brooke.
I emailed Robert copies of the photos, one he had seen before (its already on ww) but the other (showing Linda underway) was a newbie to Robert. Robert returned the favour with four photos, two showing Linda as they purchased her in 1992, one of her half way thru the reconstruction. The final one has her off Salthouse’s in 1995, after the four year restoration.
Linda features else where on ww so hit the search box to see some early photos.
KERERU (Pamela) photos & details ex Ken Ricketts, edited by Alan H.
According to her owner, Mike Rowe, Kereru was designed by Couldrey & built by Atkinson. She looks totally original, is 28′ & powered with a Perkins diesel. Rowe has owned her for 25 years.
She has amazing similarities to the Brin Wilson built Kereru, featured in an earlier ww post & seen on the front cover of the June edition of Sea Spray, back in 1960.
Anyone able to shed some light on her past & confirm the design/build?
09-05-2016 @ Gulf Harbour (Ken R photos)
10-05-2016 Harold Kidd Input
Interesting letter from Bill Longhurst’s son attached. I was rather flattered that he thought this was my site. Naturally I put him straight and copied to Alan.
“Hi Harold, Saw the photos of Kereru on your Wooden boat site. Funny enough I googled Bill longhurst, who was my father and I see his name come up on Wooden boats, and I go into the site and the first photos come up of the Kereru……28 foot launch.
Just to put the record straight the 3 photos are definitely that of Dads launch the Pamela. Built by Keith Atkinson, and designed by Bill Couldrey that happened to live in the same street in Northcote- Heath Avenue.
Dad owned the launch for only 4 years or so, and then sold it to a guy that lived in Picton I think, it was road transported to Wellington and sailed to Picton.
Dad sold it due to poor health, he was a Art teacher at Northcote College for 26 years and retired at 55 years of age due to a heart condition, he had a hard life due to being a navagator in the Air force in World war 2, and died at the age of 62 from cancer.
I can tell by the photos that you have that this is Dads boat by the water deflecters he made, that look like boonarangs at the end of the cabin on both sides, and have photos that are identical to this.
I have since seen the boat on a pile mooring in the Weti river at Stillwater.
Amazing to see these photos of Pamela again………..
Hope some of this information has been helpful to you.
Regards Robb Longhurst.
And yes the engine was a Perkins 4107 diesel- 60hp”
So there’s a “new” Couldrey launch for us.
09-12-2022 UPDATE – ex John Oates. I have reverted back to the as launched name of Pamela on my Couldrey designed and Atkinson built launch (photo below). The main reason being that I couldn’t get my head around the idea that a seagoing vessel should have a land bird name. It also helps that my Herreshoff SK (Stuart Knockabout) 28 day sailer is named Pam. I like that connection between them
Now this is what classic boating is all about – nice boat & nice people enjoying themselves in the spring weather 🙂
Joan was designed / built in 1919 by Bailey & Lowe so should get a tick from Mr Kidd. Even though Joan is a CYA vessel, I do not know much about her, so if anyone can shed some light – please do.
Photo taken by Greg Fenwick off Onetangi, Waiheke Island.
Whats the bet there wasn’t x12 life jackets on-board 😦
04-11-2024 Input ex Steven – My Great Grandfather was James Donald and the “Marion D” was named after his wife. I have just inherited his Hardy Bros “Sea Silex” 7″ reel and Tanekaha rod that he used when fishing with Zane Grey along with two photos, one holding the Rod and reel fighting a fish, the other with a swordfish in deep water cove, BOI. My Great grandfather used to have a wool-mongers in Cox’s bay and would cruise the coast buying sheep from the farmers and then have them barged to Cox’s bay Auckland. This saved the farmers from having to walk there sheep to Auckland. Alex was his oldest Son, Trevor was the middle son and Raymond(my grandfather) was the youngest son. He also had a daughter but everyone called her “Girly”. So I am unsure of her name. From what I was told The Donalds still owned the boat during WW2 as it was commandeered from the family by the Navy during the war. Great to know she is still around, I had come to a dead end searching the “Marion D”. I will look out for a boat named “Joan”
Tasman Star was anchored in Little Shoal Bay just off Bill’s house a few weeks ago. From the photo she looks like a great an ex-fishing boat conversion. Thats a serious dry stack on the starboard side, still it most likely works a treat.
I’m sure one of the woodys thats in the ‘Work Boat’ group will be able to supply more details.
Update ex Baden Pascoe
Nice to see a work boat come up on Woodys. I’m not 100% sure who built her but Dick Lang rings a bell?.
She was built for the ‘dallies’ out west in the 1930’s. Her owner in the early days was Steve Mihaljevich, he fished for the Auckland Seine Boat Ass. Later
on she was owned by the one and only Ginger Gibbs.
Now this ones a big ask – all I know is the current owner of the photo, Harold Kidd, bought the photo (a bit blurry) at an antique fair.
Come on classic woody spotters – who can ID her ? the very flat face of the cabin front, must help.
The 3 photos above by taken by Tudor Collins in the Bay of Islands c.1955 of the Miami-registered game fisher Maňana III. The images were bought at a flea-market by Sharon Knight who has made them available via Harold for all of ww followers to relish.
Harold had no idea that this boat ever came out here to fish, but here is the proof. She appears to have been built by Dittmore as the 48 footer Irish Lady and renamed Manaňa III when bought by Capt J. C. Lusk USN (retd) of Annapolis in 1948.
Sadly she was wrecked in Alaska some years ago.
PANIA photo & details ex Ken Ricketts, edited by Alan H.
How there are a lot of holes in this post – hopefully we will be able to fill some of them.
Lets start with what we know – Pania is 28 feet long & powered by an 80 hp Ford diesel, which the owner, Don Cooper, thinks may be original. The owner has had her for 2 years & keeps her at Gulf Harbour Marina. Cooper bought her off a Mr Dave Nicholson, who he says had owned her for approx. 10 years. Nicholson had her moored at Te Atatu, when he owned her.
Now for the ‘holey’ bits – Cooper has been told & believes that she was built by Bill Couldrey in 1962 & that he has been told by someone, that Couldrey had built her for his daughter originally, but he has been told since, by a lady, that this lady was a relation Couldrey & that Couldrey didn’t have a daughter, so, of course Cooper does not know what to believe.
Any input into filling the holes would be good.
15-03-2016 Hauled out at Gulf Harbour (photos Ken R)
31-07-2016 Trolling thru the photo files & came across these photos, below, of Pania, both ex Rosemary Robinson, granddaughter of LC Coultard. (note Rosemary’s records have Pania at 30′)
RENUHOUdetails ex Ken Ricketts, John O’Meara Jnr., John Bennett, Bob Roach & Dave Stephens. edited by Alan H Now this is a great tale, its believed that she was built c.1904 as a single skin double-ender, with single mast. In the b/w photo above, Renuhou was moored in Mansion House Bay, Kawau Island. Now like so many of these old girls there are big holes in her past but this old girl has lived an ‘interesting’ life. She had been in Tauranga & was sailed by her owner, Pat O’Malley, back to Auckland in the early 1970s, who refurbished her & later sold her to John O’Meara. We understand that O’Mera owned her approx. 43 years ago (from the mid 1970’s). When he bought her she had a 40hp Ford diesel & bilge keels. She also had had a fire aboard & was badly burnt prior to O’Meara owning her. O’Meara sold her to a Michael Kirkwood, who had her moored in Okahu Bay, for quite some time. During his ownership Kirkwood fitted a permanent wheel house hatch and another mast, to her cabin top. This new aluminum mast was fitted along with a replacement for the original by a John Bennett (secretary treasurer of the PYBC). O’Meara later bought her back off Kirkwood while she was moored in the Tamaki river for 8 > 10years. O’Meara sold her to an out-of-town owner who lived in the Raglan area. They did not look after her & during his ownership she was hauled out on the Panmure Yacht Club hardstand and stayed there for quite some time. John Bennett has advised that she was more or less abandoned & as the hard stand fees were not paid she was eventually sold by the P.Y.B.C. (under the terms of their haulage agreements, to defray costs). The club sold her to Dave Stephens on 2.2.2011. Now this is where the story of Renuhou makes a big U-turn. Ken Rickets had heard that she might now be a child’s plaything in a kindergarten, so Ken did a bit of detective work & jackpot – turns out Dave Stephens had transported her (permanently) to his lifestyle property at Albany & spent the last 4+ years restoring, refurbishing & altering her to suit his needs i.e. a permanent sleep-out / accommodation that is part of his lifestyle property that features all sorts of artifacts & bits & pieces. Whilst the Ford diesel engine has been removed & sold, the well made bronze strut, shoe, rudder, & stainless steel shaft, are all intact. Whilst she is presently not seaworthy it would only require a small amount of time & money to do the essentials to get her back in the water. The photos below show Renuhou during her relocation / restoration – its a better option than what Colin Pawson calls a Beehive* restoration *for the overseas readers Beehive is a brand of matches/fire lighters 😦
Now I have friends with boats in Milford Marina who moan about the mud & that the ‘creek’ does not get dredged enough. A trip to Thames at low tide would silence them for a while 🙂
These photos were taken by Nathan Herbert on a recent trip south of the border.
Update 15/11/2014 – Our roving boat spotter Nathan suspects the b/w photo below may be Okataina thats featured above in the mud with the rather large block of flats on top. In Nathan’s eyes the portholes, tram top snd dodger are identical. I’ll let you decide.
LINDEN details & photos from Nathan Herbert, Papers Past & trademe
The trade me listing (photos below) states that this 26’ 6”, 8’ beam motorboat was designed / built in 1933 by Arnold Couldrey in Northcote.
Nathan Herbert has been sniffing around Papers Past & has uncovered that Linden was launched as ‘Eileen Patricia for a Mr W Naismith of Maraetai. In the b/w photos above she is undergoing her sea trials, in one the yacht alongside is the C-Class keeler, Mangawai, owned by G.B. Hogan of Devonport.
Powered by a rebuilt 55hp Fordson Major motor, she cruises at 8 knot & burns a gallon of diesel an hour.
Needs a couple of little jobs doing but not much as the current owner has done routine maintenance over the last 6 years.
The asking price is $7,500, thats not a lot of money for an entry level classic motorboat.
In my view as launched she is a very pretty small launch – hopefully someone will grab her & convert her back to ‘as launched’. Would make a great Lake Rotoiti boat 🙂
31/01/2015 – Some Great News
She has been bought by a CYA member (Peter Mence) & Peter tells me will be returned to her original configuration 🙂
Photos below as purchased & being hauling out & having her bottom cleaned.
Peter owns the rather smart K-Class yacht Jenanne & joins the ever increasing group of classic yachties that now own a classic motor launch. Welcome Peter to the ‘light-side’ 🙂
