Ships, Captains and Voyages

A connected chronology of vessels, masters, merchants, Māori communities, crews, cargoes and places

The waters around Kāpiti and Cook Strait were crossed by trading ships, coastal craft and whaling vessels whose journeys tied communities on both sides of the Tasman together. The following records follow their movements and the people whose work and decisions shaped them.

The 1830 whaling fleet and the flax trade

In 1830 the Sydney commercial network sent vessels to the New Zealand black-whale fishery. R. Campbell & Co. fitted out the Hind; Bell and Farmer sent the William Stoveld. Their progress became visible when the Tranmere, commanded by Smith, returned to Sydney with flax from Kāpiti on 24 June. The captain reported 25 tuns of oil aboard the William Stoveld and 16 aboard the Hind, which still had a whale alongside. The William Stoveld returned on 13 August with 50 tuns of oil and 25 tons of flax. The Norval, under Harrison, departed for the same fishery that day. Other vessels mentioned in the same sequence include the Currency Lass, Java Packet and Industry. Robert McNab, The Old Whaling Days, p. 5.

The voyage of the Roslin Castle

The barque Roslin Castle, also recorded as Roslyn Castle, connects the wider New Zealand whaling coast with Kāpiti. Under William Richards she departed Sydney in April 1836 and visited several New Zealand whaling grounds. A Kāpiti call is recorded for July 1836. Her November 1837 return to Sydney carried a reported 3,500 barrels of oil, including 500 barrels of sperm oil. Published accounts differ over the weight of baleen, giving 12 and 15 tons; both readings are retained here alongside their sources. The ship's movements connect Sydney merchants, offshore crews, shore stations and coastal communities. Vessel chronology and cited Sydney Gazette notices.

Fraser, Te Rangihaeata and the shore-station economy

Alexander and Thomas Fraser came to Kāpiti in 1837, trading with whalers and Māori. Their 1839 arrangement with Te Rangihaeata enabled the use of Mana Island as a trading and whaling base. Their schooner Twins connected Mana with Ahuriri, East Coast Māori communities, Taranaki and the South Island. The Long Point account book for 1840–1842, held by the Alexander Turnbull Library as MSY-6844, records names of Māori and Pākehā people and ships. The published archaeological study describes headsmen, Māori whalers, a cooper, carpenter, clerk and tonguer, as well as wages, passages, provisions and boats. These records reveal the people and work behind the cargo figures. National Library biographical and manuscript records; archaeological study.

How the journeys connect

The voyage record is also a record of relationships. The Tranmere connects reports from two whaling vessels to Sydney traders and the flax trade. The Roslin Castle connects numerous coastal whaling grounds to a single large return cargo. The Fraser brothers connect Kāpiti and Mana Island with Te Rangihaeata, Māori trading networks, shore whalers and the movement of provisions and whale products. Reading these journeys together makes it possible to follow a ship from port to port, a merchant from investment to shipment, and a worker from station accounts into the wider history of the coast.

Chronological voyage and people register

Dates follow the cited historical accounts. Separate departures, reports and returns appear as separate records so the same ship can be followed across time.

DateVessel or establishmentMaster or associated personPlace / routeRecorded eventHistorical source
1827WaterlooJohn GuardCook Strait / SydneyEarly voyages associated with Guard; verify individual port movementsMcNab, The Old Whaling Days
1830-03HindSydneyR Campbell & Co purchased and fitted out brig for black-whale fisheryMcNab, The Old Whaling Days, p.5
1830-04-26William StoveldSydney to New ZealandBell and Farmer sent vessel on whaling cruiseMcNab, The Old Whaling Days, p.5
1830-05-04HindSydney to New ZealandDeparted for black-whale fisheryMcNab, The Old Whaling Days, p.5
1830-06-24TranmereSmithKāpiti to SydneyArrived with flax; reported William Stoveld holding 25 tuns oil and Hind 16 tuns with a whale alongsideMcNab, The Old Whaling Days, p.5
1830-08-13William StoveldNew Zealand to SydneyReturned with 50 tuns oil and 25 tons flax; shore party mentionedMcNab, The Old Whaling Days, p.5
1830-08-13NorvalHarrisonSydney to New ZealandSailed for black-whale fisheryMcNab, The Old Whaling Days, p.5
1830Currency Lass; Java Packet; IndustryNew Zealand watersReported present when William Stoveld departed; distinct vessel mentionsMcNab, The Old Whaling Days, p.5
1836-04-29Roslin Castle / Roslyn CastleWilliam RichardsSydney to New ZealandDeparture for New Zealand whaling voyage; multiple subsequent coastal callsNicholson, Shipping Arrivals and Departures Sydney 1826–1840; Sydney Gazette references
1836-07-13Roslin Castle / Roslyn CastleWilliam RichardsKāpitiReported arrival after calls elsewhere in New ZealandShipping chronicle references compiled in Roslin Castle vessel history
1837-11-07Roslin Castle / Roslyn CastleWilliam RichardsSydneyReturned with 3,500 barrels oil (500 sperm oil); reported baleen weight differs between accounts (12 or 15 tons)Sydney Gazette, 9 Nov 1837; secondary vessel histories
1837Alexander and Thomas FraserKāpitiBrothers arrived and traded with whalers and MāoriNational Library of NZ, Alexander Fraser biographical record
1839Alexander and Thomas Fraser; TwinsMana Island / East CoastArrangement with Te Rangihaeata to use Mana Island; schooner Twins traded with Māori communities and called at AhuririNational Library of NZ, Alexander Fraser biographical record
1840–1842Long Point whaling establishmentAlexander FraserLong Point, Kāpiti IslandAccount book records expenditure, names of Māori and Pākehā workers and shipsAlexander Turnbull Library, MSY-6844
1840Long Point workforceAlexander FraserKāpiti IslandPublished archaeological analysis records 25 men, five headsmen, 11 Māori, a cooper, carpenter, clerk and tonguer; wage and provisioning figuresThe Archaeology of New Zealand Shore Whaling, Fraser manuscript discussion

Historical sources

  1. Robert McNab, The Old Whaling Days (1913), especially p. 5.
  2. National Library of New Zealand: Alexander Fraser and manuscript MSY-6844.
  3. The Archaeology of New Zealand Shore Whaling.
  4. Lloyd’s Register historical collections.
  5. NZ Ship & Marine Society historical collections.

Download the chronological records (CSV)

1836–1837: Vessels moving between Kāpiti, Cloudy Bay and Sydney

The movements of the Bee, Cheviot and Roslyn Castle reveal how Cook Strait anchorages formed a connected maritime circuit. The Bee anchored at Kāpiti on 26 August 1836, reached Cloudy Bay on the 28th, left on the 31st and anchored at Port Cooper on 2 September. On 12 September the Roslyn Castle and Cheviot sailed together from Cloudy Bay towards Kāpiti.

McNab also preserves a glimpse of the people behind the voyages: an August 1836 wage advance of ten shillings for the Bee seaman Billy Williams, payable through Mr Long’s office in George Street, Sydney. The same passage describes stores and additional hands sent to George Hempleman’s whaling establishment.

The Roslyn Castle, a 450-ton barque built at Bristol in 1819, was commanded on her 1836–1837 New Zealand whaling voyage by William Richards. She returned to Sydney on 7 November 1837 with 3,500 barrels of whale oil, including 500 barrels of sperm oil. Accounts differ in the quantity of baleen carried.

Voyage appearances

DateVesselPlaceRecorded movement
1836-07-13Roslyn CastleKāpiti IslandArrival at Kāpiti after Cloudy Bay and Akaroa; the vessel later returned to Cloudy Bay.
1836-08-26BeeKāpiti IslandThe brig Bee anchored at Kāpiti on its passage from Sydney towards Cloudy Bay and Port Cooper.
1836-08-28BeeCloudy BayBee sailed from Kāpiti to Cloudy Bay.
1836-08-31BeeCloudy BayBee departed Cloudy Bay for Port Cooper.
1836-09-02BeePort CooperBee anchored at Port Cooper.
1836-09-12Roslyn CastleCloudy Bay to KāpitiSailed from Cloudy Bay for Kāpiti in company with Cheviot.
1836-09-12CheviotCloudy Bay to KāpitiSailed from Cloudy Bay for Kāpiti alongside Roslyn Castle.
1837-11-07Roslyn CastleSydneyReturned to Sydney with 3,500 barrels of whale oil, including 500 barrels of sperm oil; baleen quantity reported differently in secondary accounts.

Historical references

Robert McNab, The Old Whaling Days (1913), p.151; Roslin Castle vessel history, citing the Sydney Gazette and Ian Nicholson’s shipping compilations; Australian Colonial Whaling Voyages and Australian Place Reports.