Early New Zealand Shipping

Waterloo
There may have been more than one Waterloo operating in New Zealand waters in the early 1830’s. The first was John Guard’s vessel which he sailed from Sydney to his home in Cook Strait in June 1829. In August, Waterloo was at Port Underwood when Cyprus arrived, and later she met Caroline at Chalky Inlet while on her way to the sealing grounds in the south. By January 1830 Guard was ready to sail his ship to Sydney and when he arrived there on February 3, his cargo included 2 tuns of whale oil and 1185 seal skins. He left again just over three weeks later with goods for his whaling station and a new wife, Elizabeth Parker. In April Waterloo brought another person to Te Awaiti who would become a lasting identity in New Zealand history, James Heberley. Guard crossed the Tasman two more times in 1830 with goods for the Sydney market, including 14 tons of flax, and bringing back necessities for life on a New Zealand whaling station. On Waterloo’s first voyage to Sydney in 1831, her cargo included another 15 tons of flax, and 700 seal skins. In September she made another return voyage, this time arriving in the colony from Campbell’s shore whaling station with oil and bone. Guard’s first visit to Sydney in 1832 was in March when he delivered 115 seal skins and 9 tuns of whale oil. While there he enlisted a new whaling gang before heading back to Cloudy Bay. In August Waterloo had a new master, Captain Hall, who delivered 40 tons of oil, and collected provisions for the whaling gangs in Cook Strait. There were further voyages across the Tasman in November, and in 1833, in February, July, and September. However Waterloo’s run ended when she was wrecked on the beach at Waikanae, then pillaged and burned by local Maori. In 1831 a ship named Waterloo, Captain Brady, brought whale oil into Sydney. In June she arrived with three tuns of oil from one whale, and in December with 40 tuns.

Wellington
In 1823 George Bolts and John Guard were among the crew of the sealer Wellington when she sailed from Sydney to the sealing grounds in Foveaux Strait. Just under two years later Wellington was reported to be at the Auckland Islands, another lucrative destination for sealing ships. In 1827 Wellington arrived at the Bay of Islands and immediately drew attention from missionary Henry Williams and visiting ship captains Duke, of Sisters, and Clarke, of Harriet. Captain Clarke boarded the ship on suspicion that not all was as it seemed on the vessel. While onboard he learnt from Wellington’s Captain Harwood that they had been seized by convicts while transporting them to Norfolk Island. On learning this, the missionary and captains with help from the whalers crews, Sisters’ guns, and local resident John Lidiard, retook the ship and recaptured the convicts as they tried to escape by fleeing ashore. On January 28, with her rightful captain back at the helm, Wellington sailed back to Sydney in company with Sisters.

Westmoreland
Westmoreland was arguably the ship that brought about the greatest change in New Zealand tribal warfare. In 1821 resident chief Hongi Hika returned to the Bay of Islands on Westmoreland, having gone with missionary Thomas Kendall to England to meet King George IV. While there the king gifted Hongi with a huge amount of firearms and a suit of armour. With so many weapons at his disposal, Hongi Hika was able to easily extract revenge on his enemy neighbours whose traditional weapons were no match for the muskets. What had previously been inter-tribal skirmishes were now full scale assaults that resulted in unprecedented numbers of deaths.

William and Ann
The first whaleship known to visit New Zealand, Captain Eb Bunker anchored her in Doubtless Bay in 1792. William and Ann arrived in the southern seas as was one of eleven ships that made up the ‘Third Fleet’ transporting 2000 convicts to the new penal colony in Port Jackson, New South Wales in 1791. Five of the fleet were whaleships. After arriving in New South Wales, Eb Bunker led his ship, and another from the fleet; Britannia, on the first whaling expedition in Australian waters, before embarking on a short whaling cruise into New Zealand waters where he visited Doubtless Bay.

William Stoveld
William Stoveld, Captain Davidson, left Sydney bound for the Society and South Sea Islands on a speculative voyage in August 1829. They returned in March the following year, then promptly departed again on a whaling cruise to New Zealand. Owned by Bell & Farmer, William Stoveld was bay whaling off Kapiti in June that year, and returned to Sydney in August with 50 tuns of oil and 25 tons of flax. William Stoveld’s success in New Zealand quickly spread around the Sydney trading and whaling community, along with reports that some of the men had lived ashore while there. It boded well for future trade in the area. In October William Stoveld left Sydney on its next voyage with Joseph Price among its crew. However, no soon had they arrived in New Zealand waters, and while they were off Entry Isle, Price jumped ships and stowed away in Vittoria. When Captain Davidson sailed his ship back to Sydney in early December, his crew had taken 199 tuns of oil. In February 1832 they set out again, spending 10 days at Cloudy Bay, before continuing on to the South Seas fisheries. When they arrived back in Sydney in June 1833, William Stoveld’s hold contained a full cargo of sperm oil.

William the Fourth
In 1832 William the Fourth, Captain Steine sailed from Hobart to New Zealand’s Kapiti Coast, and then proceeded to explore the coastline around the beautiful Queen Charlotte Sound and Cloudy Bay. By the time they sailed from Queen Charlotte Sound, young Captain Steine had discovered Waitohi. Today Waitohi is known as Picton, the busy port for ferries linking the North and South Islands. On September 01 William the Fourth arrived back in Hobart.

Woodlark
Captain Josh Moore first arrived at the Bay of Islands from Port Jackson Woodlark on 18 November 1820, calling in on their way to the fishery. It wasn’t until April 1822 that Woodlark was back, and only briefly before heading out again for the fishery and Sydney. In January 1823 and March 1824, Captain Moore brought Woodlark into the Bay of Islands again while on whaling voyages. By 1829 Woodlark had a new master, Captain Edwards, and when they arrived at Sydney after a year at sea, they had a full cargo of 220 tons of oil. After two months at port, Edwards sailed Woodlark out again for the sperm fishery, returning 14 months later with 190 tons of sperm whale oil. In December 1830 Woodlark had another new captain, Grimes, when she set sail from Sydney for the sperm fishery once more.