"SHIPS THAT PASS."

Thames Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 17646, 25 July 1929, Page 4

"SHIPS THAT PASS."

. OLD WAIMARIE SOLD, TOWED FROM PAEROA TO AUCKLAND. .. Habitues of the Thames waterfront noticed the other day a once familiar vessel slowly going down the Waihou in charge of tugs and a few recognised her as the old Waimarie, once the pride of the Northern Company's fleet of passenger steamers, but for a long time laid up at Paeroa. Formerly sho was on the Auckland-Paeroa run. There was more trade in those times and the Northern Steamship Company had two vessels on the Paeroa service. Eight years ago it was found necessary to lay one boat off that run. and so, in June, 1921. the Waimarie was put out of commission, and she lay at Paeroa until Tuesday, when two oil-tugs took charge of her and towed her up to Auckland. The Waimarie was built at Auckland in 1896 by Mr. P. Logan, sen.,; for the Northern Company's Paeroa service. Her princioal dimensions are: —Length, 102 ft; breadth. 22ft: depth, 7ft 9in. She /is a twin-screw wooden vessel of kauri, and lias a gross tonnage of 245 tons. She was bought about one month ago by an Auckland ship-breaker. One mishap occurred on the way. The Waimarie "took the bottom" while going down the Waihou River and stuck, thus missing a tide. She did not arrive in port until 9 o'clock yesterday morning. In "Rotten Row" in the Waitemata are two other vessels of the Northern Company's, which are for sale. They are the well-known paddle-steamer Wakatere, which used to run to Thames, and the Aupcuri, which was on the Bay of Plenty service.