KARROS
photo ex Dave Jackson
The personal boat of boat builder Dave Jackson, built in 1974 by Dave – all wood, single skin. They do not get much more salty looking than this.
Karros
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waitematawoody talks on our maritime heritage
As part of Auckland’s Heritage Festival, Harold Kidd – NZ’s leading maritime historian & waitematawoody spoke at the RNZYS tonight on the topic ” Explore the Waitematā Harbour’s commercial and recreational maritime history”
I have attempted below to summarize Harolds talk – this is just the overview, his narrative & supporting photos made the evening one of the most informative & enjoyable talks I have been to. There was not a spare seat in the room & everyone left with a smile on their face – well done Harold & Pauline.
1. The Early Period – 1840 to 1870, which saw the the european reliant on the maori for fish & produce, the development of the boat building industry & the arrival on the scene of regattas & match races.
2. Between 1870 & 1900 with the first pure yachts (versus work boats) we saw the emergence of yacht clubs & proliferation of ‘organised’ regattas.Competition was fierce in the yacht building industry & the export of yachts was happening. We also saw the increased use of kauri & the arrival of the diagonal construction method.
Open sailing boats & the rise of the mullet boat as a ‘type’ were new to the scene.
3.The 1900’s to 1920 – this period was noted for the racing of mullet boats as a class, the first centre boarders & the building & launching of over 3,000 motor boats / launches. This period was also ‘effected’ by WW1 & the influenza epidemic.
4.The 1920’s to 1945 – a post war boom & bust & then boom again marked this era. We had the rise of the one-design & restricted centre board classes. Launch & keel boat building continued to boom in the 1930’s.
5.1945 – 1965 – period marked by the postwar boom & the arrival of new materials. This saw a boom in keel boat construction for racing & offshore cruising. Yachts clubs continued to proliferate. Designers took advantage of the new materials. We started to become more involved in International contests.
6. 1965 + Increasing sophistication in design & use of materials. International racing success. The America’s Cup. All this saw NZ at the forefront of the worlds yacht design & construction.
Another Unknown Launch
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Unknown Launch
photo ex Ken Ricketts
Venue looks like Milford Creek??
Any ideas on the vessel ??
Harold Kidd Update
I’m sure this pic originated from me. (you are correct Harold, I think you sent it several years ago to Ken R – Alan H) It’s not a Williams boat as he started building well after WW2 and this launch is 1920s or earlier. It’s not VIVEEN, Percy Mason’s first boat (see my column in this November’s Boating NZ). I suspect it’s MAIEBE, ex-MARY M, ex-REGINA, built by Lanes in December 1912 as a flushdecker which had a very similar “bridgedeck”, tramtop and dodger put on in the latter part of her life. She went ashore and broke up in the violent storm of early February 1936 when owned by Bert Prosser. That storm was often talked about in my family because my father’s yacht WAKANUI went up on the beach at Waiwera during it, while my mother was at home 8.5 months pregnant with me! He got hell for years.
I’ll check with pics at home tonight. I would think Warkworth River too, and I’m sure the original image I have at home has a Tudor Collins backstamp.
Mystery Launch
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Mystery Launch
photo ex Ken Ricketts
Ok – can anyone ID the launch closest to the camera? The back one is almost certainly the Lady Una. And while you are at it what about the yacht?
Harold Kidd Update
I haven’t a clue about the launch, but the yacht is intriguing. She’s clearly an early 1890’s two and a half rater that’s been bobbed at the bow. The giveaways are the non-faired stem post and the cabin top/cockpit treatment. I’m not really up with what progressive “modernisations” each of these yachts suffered. A pity her underbody comes out so murky. However I would plump for GLORIANA (but I think she’s too fat) or a Bailey boat like DAISY. I would love a high-res image to play with the contrast and brightness and see if the hull below the waterline could be brought up.
Gloriana lines ex HDK
Lady Joan
Kaipara photo
LADY JOAN
Ken Rickets took the b/w photo of Lady Joan c.1948>1950, owned at the time by Mr Stan Headland, an insurance broker, whom Ken knew.
In the mid 1940s she had a Ford flathead V8, with 2 side exhausts initially, which were sited well up each side of the hull, below the bridgedeck, with no mufflers. The engine sounded terrible, as you could only hear 1 at a time & as all V8 engines must fire 2 cylinders from the same bank one after the other, it sounded as if the engine was missing badly. The set up was later replaced by 1 stern exhaust in the late 1940s.
Headland then bought Lady Claire in the1950s & sold Lady Joan. She is now in the Sounds, owned by Tony Ryalls who purchased her from Nelson. Currently powered by a new 3cyl. Lombardini which replaced an old 4cyl. Ford. There was a recent write-up on her in Boating NZ.
Any more details from her past would be appreciated.
Update (& photo) from Zach Matich
Lady Joan was on the Kaipara, owned first by the Mockett family then by Cyril Powell.
Unsure on the dates but I can find out as I know Cyril and his son Royce.
She was powered by a 4 cylinder Ford Ebro and had a good turn of speed.
Going off the photo’s Royce showed me of when they did her up she was
a pretty classy old ship.
Harold Kidd Update
Lady Joan was taken over by NAPS in 1942 with the following crew; CPO Stan Headland (owner and skipper), PO Max Vipond and Stan Thomson (deputy skippers), A.V. Hardley, R.A. Johnstone (AB6690), H.Rees, T. Taylor. Her number was Z11. Her duties were Boom Patrol and Boom Control vessel. Her early history is somewhat enigmatic. I think it’s likely that she was a pre-WW1 34 footer renamed Lady Joan post-WW1.
My first record under that name is in 1921 and there are sporadic entries from then on with owners like J. J. and F. Mackay of Bayswater (1926-1936), the Cashmores some time in the 1930s (although that may have been Lady Jean) and then Stan Headland just before WW2. Headland converted her from a straightstemmer to a raised-foredeck, flared-bow bridgedecker.
Headland kept her until at least 1950. During his ownership she had a 95hp Palmer marine engine (probably a conversion of the Ford Mercury V8 by Palmer). Later owners include W.L. Beattie, J Caulfield, and then on the Kaipara, Bill Woodcock, Pouto (1968), Ivan Mockett, Ruawai (1975) and Cyril & Doug Powell (1985). She was in Helensville as recently as 1995.
Unfortunately there were at least 2 Lady Joans in these parts, which confuses the trail somewhat. I have no images but the National Maritime Museum has some wartime movie footage of her.
Esme
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ESME
photo & details ex Ken Ricketts
Esme belonged to Henry Allen in the 1920s & 30s prior to him buying Tiromoana. The above photo was taken in 1924 & was as published in The NZ Aquatic magazine Friday, March 14th 1924. Not sure of her engine at this stage. She was named after his daughter Esme.
H.A. spoke of the boat when ever Ken saw him in the 1940s & 50s. He undoubtedly was very fond of the old boat. Ken never ever saw Esme, always wanted to, & now with this photo his curiosity is answered.
Harold Kidd Update
ESME was built by Joe Slattery for Pop Allen in August 1921. I’ve no info on engine fitted but it must have been fairly potent as she was fast. Allen raised her cabin top and put on a dodger in 1930. She was for sale on TradeMe three years ago in desperate condition. Kevin Hussey had owned her at Half Moon Bay in poor condition for some time before that.
ESME IN AQUATIC MAGAZINE 14.3.24
Pacific
PACIFIC
Was up at Gulf Harbour recently & spotted the 1917, Joe Slattery designed & built Pacific. Always nice to see what the pretty ones look like out of the water.
Ranginui
RANGINUI
photos & details from Harold Kidd
The photos above of the bridge-decker RANGINUI, a good-looking craft.
All Harold knows about her is that she was owned in 1952-3 by H D Hall, in 1973 by L A Boswell who sold her to Keith and Betty Bankart.
Does anyone know more about her, particularly who built her and where she is now?
Update from Ken Rickets – RANGINUI was built for the Halls, who were building contractors, in the late 1930s or early 40s & as you can see in the 2 pics, she was lengthened in the later 40s & am almost certain the addition was done by Roy Lidgard -but it may possibly have been Shipbuilders – the Halls had her for many years & she was a regular at Kawau at Christmas. The tuck had a special shape as I recall — looked a lillte bit long &narrow after being lengthened I thought.
Harold Kidd Update
Betty Bankart thinks she was built in 1947 by Chas. Bailey & Sons Ltd, which seems plausible.
07-01-2016 Photo ex Peter Croft of Ranginui at Ponui
08-05-2017 Update – Peter Croft the owner of Ranginui was working on her & uncovered this ‘note’ written on the hull, in the loo (head). As Ranginui was launched in 1946 or 1947 it could have been written by one of the boatbuilders, or someone who didn’t rate one of the builders 🙂
Tawhiri
TAWHIRI
photos & details below ex Ken Ricketts
Built c.1946 by Roy Lidgard in their shed, at Smelting House Bay, Kawau Island. Note similarities to Ted Coopers Awarua. Tawhiri is a little shorter at approx. 36ft. & AWARUA 37ft. Unsure who she was built for, Harold Kidd might be able to help here?
Tawhiri originally had a 4 cyl Lister diesel, (painted bottle green) installed in a box which formed the table in the middle of the main cabin area. Roy Lidgard installed Listers in quite a few boats of that era, another went into the Wainunu for Clive Power, to which Kens father later fitted an electric self starter system for Clive c.1949-50.
At one stage she belonged to a Euan Berger, ex Air NZ cabin crew, whom Ken knew in the1970s-80s. Berger replaced the Lister with a 6 cyl. Ford diesel, (after which she floated about 6 inches higher in the water in the bow, the Lister must have weighed a thousand tons) Tim Lees may have done the engine change.
Ken last saw Tawhiri a couple of years ago, in a scoria & building merchants yard in Karapiro Drive at Whangaparaoa, where she sat for a few months.
Ken took the photo in the water at Christmas 1948, in Mansion House Bay, Kawau Island. The other was taken on a slip, adjacent to the Panmure Yacht Club, by the look of the background, (which Ken can identify well with, as his father was commodore of that club), Ken recalls the photo was sent to him for I.D. , possibly by Harold Kidd & is not sure when it was taken but it was long time ago as the area is quite different there now.
Ken is interested to hear if anyone knows anything more of Tawhiri’s life.
Harold Kidd Update
Lloyd’s Yacht Register says she was built by Lidgards Shipyards in 1947 and was named TAWHIRI II. However I think 1946 is right as because her first owner, Jim Inkster, registered her with the Squadron in the 1945-46 year. Jim Inkster had owned the yachts DAISY, SCOUT and had the 38 footer TANGAROA built by Percy Vos in 1936, so TAWHIRI was TANGAROA’s postwar replacement. Her original engine was a 1945-built 3 cylinder 30hp Lister diesel, about all you could get at the time, and that stayed in her until at least 1964. Her official APYMBA dimensions were 35’x33’x10’6″x2’9″ which vary from the Thames Measurement dimensions given in the LYR entry. In 1964 Stuart Clark registered her as a British Registered Ship under #191807 from which I have drawn her engine details.
Jim Inkster sold her to A.J. Noakes in 1950-51. Later owners I know of were D.D. Brown (1962), Stuart G. Clark (1964) and Muir (later Sir Muir) Chilwell QC (1970). Berger must have been after Muir.
Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition – Tino Rawa Trust – Oct 4>6
CY&LE 2012
CY&LE 2012
CY&LE 2012
CY&LE 2012
Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition – Tino Rawa Trust – Oct 4>6
Tino Rawa Trust is again hosting the CYA Classic Yacht & Launch Exhibition at Karanga Plaza (next to the Viaduct Events Centre) from Friday 4th to Sunday 6th October, 10am – 4pm daily. The event is run alongside the 2013 Auckland Heritage Festival ‘Maritime Heritage On The Waterfront (Sept 28 – Oct 13) promotion.
There will be an amazing collection of classic yachts & launches, classic dinghies, small yachts & picnic boats on display. This years event focuses on the acclaimed designers Jack Brooke & Bob Stewart & will include a selection of their vessels.
Remember to check out the CYA’s permanent on-the-water display at the CYA Marina, Heritage Landing, Silo Park at the Wynyard Quarter.
For details on all events click links below
http://www.yourwaterfront.co.nz
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