Build Date
1899
Boat Builder
Davey Darroch
Length
75 Feet 3 Inches
Beam
19 Feet 4 Inches
Kahu’s Early Years
Built as a schooner rigged deck scow in 1899 by Davey Darroch Kahu was used for trade in Auckland and Northland. At one point she was carrying gelignite and detonators between Auckland and Kuaotonu for gold mining operations.
Her first owners James Dunning, Charlotte Donald and the master Christie Muller had her for only one year. From 1900 Ernest Ford, Robert Samuel Reynolds and Alexander Tankard took ownership. Ford left the syndicate in 1902 and Elizabeth Mary Reynolds joined.
From 1907 the Northern Coal Co. Ltd., took ownership. During these years Kahu traded between Ngunguru and the Northern Coal Co. Ltd’s depot in Auckland. Whilst here Kahu also had a couple of incidents. She was stranded in October 1908 with C. Johnson at the helm in the Kaituna River. This would happen on Ponui Island with A. Berrudge in charge in June 1911.
Draught
4 Feet 1 inch
Weight
47.43 GT / 43.16 NT
Official Number
102314
Kahu’s Tragic Ending
In 1911 Arthur Berridge and Gerard Edwin Sampson became her final owners with Sampson owning Kahu until 1920 and Berridge only 1918. Also in 1911 Kahu had two engines removed and two 40bhp engines installed.
In 1914 with H.W. Parker at the helm Kahu was stranded at Whakatane. But her final trip would happen on the 24th March 1920 with Captain John Leafberg at the helm, her owner Gerard Sampson was on board as the engineer and L. Taylor, AB and A. Stevens as OS and cook. They left Motiti Island with 592 sacks of maize bound for Auckland. But the weather was rough and they hit strong south-easterlies. She was possibly sighted by Tasman on the 26th March 1920 as they were passing but after this Kahu and her crew tragically disappeared. The only sign of her journey was found months later in May when her lifeboat was washed up on the south-east side of Little Barrier Island.
References
To Research Kahu we used the book A History of New Zealand Scows and their Trades by David Langdon.
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