Build Date
1902
Boat Builder
Bailey and Lowe
Length
76 Feet 8 Inches
Beam
21 Feet 2 Inches
Building Vesper
Vesper was built as a ketch-rigged deck scow by Bailey and Lowe in Auckland. She had a large deck area, flat bottom, one centreboard and a fixed rudder which led some to say Vesper is not a true scow. Vesper was not a particularly large scow at 76.8ft long but being built out of such heavy timbers she once collapsed the slipway at Whangarei. Vesper was also built with substantial chine timber that meant they could be well rounded. This combined with her shallow bilge keels helped Vesper become one of the fastest scows built in Auckland which was often proven in the regattas she raced at.
Her first owners were James, James Edwin and Wiliam John Biddick. They owned her from 1902 until 1917. The Biddick family were well known for freighting stock in the Hauraki Gulf and they are noted as altering Vesper twice in 1908 and 1910.
Draught
3 Feet 5 Inches
Weight
47.09 GT / 9.77 NT
Official Number
102339
Vesper’s Troubled Times
During Vesper’s years with the Biddick family she had several incidents. One in May 1907 when she collided with barque Manurewa in the Hauraki Gulf with James Biddick at the helm. The second was with May Howard in Auckland in July 1910 with F.E. Wilis as skipper. The third was also in Auckland and was with Oceano in July 1911 with T.W. Edlington in charge. As well as collisions Vesper was stranded twice in January 1910 at Whangaparaoa Peninsula under P. Petersen and in Auckland in November 1913 under T.W. Edlington. Despite some of these incidents causing significant damage Vesper was always repaired and returned to service.
Her last incident with the Biddick’s was by far the worst. After leaving Whangarei for Cleveden on the 13 September 1916 with G. Davis at the helm she was found floating upside down off Whangaparapara at Great Barrier Island by fishermen. They towed her into the harbour but her crew were never found. Although there had been strong winds the conditions weren’t considered too bad and Vesper was known to be a good sea vessel. At the time it was thought that she had sprung a leak, flooded and turned over. Her dinghy was later found broken up at Port Fitzroy but tragically still no sign of the crew was found.
Vesper After the Biddicks
This was not the end for Vesper though as she was sold to the Whakatane Harbour Board in 1917. They purchased her after the scow Welcome was wrecked. They used Vesper to transport stone from Whale Island to Whakatane harbour for improvements. In 1920 they altered her, and she was remeasured. Before being sold to the Whakatane Harbour Board in 1917, Vesper was seen in Napier as well as loading shorthorn cattle from Hobbs farm on Tiritiri Matangi Island.
In 1921 Herbert Anton Couldrey, Henry August Kasper and the Tauranga Rimu Company Limited purchased Vesper. In 1930 Vesper changed owners again this time to Lancelot Harry Julian who owned her until 1934 when Parry Brothers Limited took ownership. They had Vesper until 1953 and during this time they altered her engines three times in December 1934, September 1947 and December 1948. Vesper also had her last noted incident during their ownership. In July 1941 with G.W. Roff at the helm Vesper hit the Swing Bridge near Thames.
After this her ownership is less well known with Ted Parkes owning her in the 1950s and Keith Wright in the 1960s.
During Vespers trading years she transported shingle to Matakana, Puhoi, Warkworth, Albany, coal from Ngunguru and glass from Parengarenga Harbour.
References
To research Vesper we used the book A History of New Zealand Scows and their Trades by David Langdon and Papers Past.
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