STEAMER WAIROA

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 31 May 1930, Page 8

STEAMER WAIROA

AN UNEVENTFUL BUT USEFUL CAREER FORTY YEARS' TRADING IN TASMAN BAY THE NAME OF RICKETTS BROS. Stripped of her engines, and apparently at the end of her sea-going day a, the little steamer Wairoa, which for 40 years has kept the name of Ric* ketts Bros, prominent in Nelson shipping circlesj has been. relegated to a gear-carrier for an engineer who; has ■ hopes of finding oil in the Nelson har- ■' bOUn " :' . ' - .-.' ... , The history of the Wairoa, a vessel of about 00 tons gross register, as outlined this Week by* Mr. C. Ricketts, one of the original owners of the, boat when Nelson became her headquarters, shows that the vessel has had a fairly uneventful life for a. New Zealand coastal boat, but as he'explained,-'the vessel has traded, over a long period, 1 between the small ports of the Tasman Bay, where the weather conditions have always been such, that the timetable _ has usually been, fulfilled with : .|Jttle" interruption.. Except for an occasional stranding owing to being "nipped" ;by ; the tide when the ship was visiting., some of the smaller settlementsVarOuhdtlie Bay,.there.haVe been few ineidehts which . add interest. to the career.- * '■■''.''. '•■ ;~ ff-.l

Mr Ricketts said the steamerVwould not go to sea again in the interests of her old owners as she' had been'sold, but typical.of. the faith a saijpr. has , in a boat he has been connected with for years, lie., would not agree l ; to a suggestion that the WairOa had Reached the stage when she could no longer go to sea. "With new engines in her she' could.go'to sea again," said Mr Ricketts. i ■'•"" ; - : : ■• ■ ■'•■ ;: ~ \ '.;.

; : ';-BUILT IN-1882 [

About the year 1882 the Wairoa was built at the Hawkes Bay port of .;■';/ name for Mr light who ran the teasel ; ■ between Wairoa and Napier.' However ; the farmers in the;district considered ; the owner of the Wairoa, was making J. .■;< too much profit; out .of the;; carriage- of, : their produce and supplies arid-had the Pania, a ship of about the same size, built to run in'opposition, to the ; Wairoa. , .'-', V* After lying idle at Napier lor some time the Wairoa was bought b"y j ;Cap. : tain John' Westrupp and Mr Bennett for trading between Wellington and Patea. However she was not large enough for the trade and so the owners replaced her with the Mana in tjie year 1887. .' • ■ ' '.' i\ ■',

In the same year the Wairoa came to Nelson, being purchased by the Ricketts Bros., Messrs J., F. and C. Ricketts being the shareholders.' For tlje first twelve months under the ownership pi Ricketts Bros, the Wairoa pijed between Motueka, Nelson and Wellingtoit via the Sounds. Later her engines were .<■-, replaced by those from the: 1 steam I; yacht Torea which belonged (to I'Mr Henry, Redwood when he had his private, horse? training track ori Rabbit . Island. From 1902 until 1927} when taken off'the running, the Wairoa plied between r : Nelson, Motueka, Takafea: aif 4 Collingwoqd with frequent calls/' at . other slmall settlements, in; the Bay.

i FOUR DIFFERENT ';

During the 40 years the Wairoa was owned by the Ricketts Bros, she was under the command of four different captains!. The late Captain FrahM Ricketts was her skipper until aboutv:l922, when she was taken over by. Captain E. •_ Ricketts, another brother who at I that time acquired an interest in the vessel. During the last five y'ears of herJ.ruhning Captains George . King arid' J. Reeves were in command for about" equal periods. , ' '•':<- "We've been pretty lucky with her,"; said Mr Ricketts. "She went ashore at Collingwood at times but that was only a small matter. She also hit.ithe rocks off Clay Point once, but was-not much damaged." " About twenty years ago one of the crew of the Wairoa was drowned when, he fell from a dinghy at Waitapu.'Oft One occasion while berthing at Nelson owing to a misunderstanding in the engine Vooin the boat was sent ahead Instead of astern With tlie result that; tiie bows ran under the wharf, it being'.. low tide, and the foremast received sucli u bump that it fell. "She's carried a lot of produce, cheese .&■ and butter, across the. Bay," said the. v . old part-owner, "and she was well known by all the settlers around the Bay who in those days relied on boats for their supplies." The Ricketts family, tip to 1927, had,; nii\'.,.tfc boat service to Waitapu since?*, 1882 K( when Captain P. RicKetts owned ! the. ketch Comet. '

. Mr J. Ricketts and Mr C. hit;.the siuwivingThembers of this well- ' lendwn shipping family who held a record in that each four brothers',was the holder of a master's certificate. Messrs - J. and C, Ricketts for many years have practically.; confined their attention to the carrying on of their boat building and repairing business at the Port.