Build Date
1946
Boat Builder
George Brassell
Length
58 Feet
Beam
15 Feet 6 inches
Building Tawera
During the war George Brassell skippered the examination vessel at Lyttleton and then worked as a Deck Officer with the Union Steamship Company. But in the final year of the war, he went to Port Chalmers to build “the boat my father had always talked and dreamed about”. This was especially important as George’s father had been killed during the war following an awful misunderstanding. His trawler the Dolphin was sunk by a shell from the Coastal Defence Battery in Lyttleton.
The Tawera took a year to build with the help of an elderly Port Chalmers boat builder and fisherman and she was named Tawera. She had the first high speed diesel engine in the South Island installed and with it she could reach 8 knots. The Tawera was said to be the “sturdiest type of vessel in New Zealand for her size” which is probably why George felt safe taking her out into a storm on a rescue mission.
Tawera’s Daring Rescue and Fishing in 2024
George mainly used Tawera for fishing out of Lyttleton and Akaroa for six years but eventually his health put a stop this work and he sold Tawera to a private company. But during his time with Tawera George was awarded the Royal Humane Society’s gold medal for gallantry for helping to rescue the crew of the yacht Astral that had been competing in the Centennial Yacht race between Wellington and Lyttleton in 1951. George had also been competing in the race but when he knew a storm was coming he turned his yacht around, flew to Christchurch and took the Tawera out to search for any yachts that were having difficulties in the storm.
He would rescue the six man crew of the yacht Astral and take them to safety in Wellington but it was not an easy rescue. George said the ship did everything but “turn inside out.” “On the trip we had one consolation. We knew the sea couldn’t get any worse. Visibility was almost nil.”
Between George and his current owners it is unknown how many skipper she has had. In in the 2020s she was owned and skippered by Colin Sharland who used her for commercial fishing. In 2024 Tawera is owned by Rex Sellers and is still fishing out of Nelson Marina
References
To research Tawera we used Te Ara, New Zealand History and Deep Cove Outdoor Education Trust.
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Does anyone have any information on this boat called the ‘Tawera’ after it was sold by the original owner?