Built in 1838, this stone wharf used by the passenger ferry from Whitianga is thought to be the oldest wharf structure still in use in New Zealand.
Southern side of Old Stone Wharf and the ferry. Photograph courtesy of J. La Roche.
Gordon Davis Brown (d.1842) is credited with designing and installing the wharf, aided by local Māori who squared the blocks of stone used in its construction. Brown was a Sydney timber merchant who came to Mercury Bay in 1836 to establish a timber mill and shipbuilding enterprise in the bay adjacent to Old Stone Wharf. Brown formed a business partnership with Captain Ranulph Dacre (1797–1884), also from Sydney, who was involved in exporting sawn timber and spars to the British Navy. Dacre is also noted for negotiating with Māori land owners for land and timber rights.
The Old Stone Wharf is constructed of large local stone blocks that were originally trimmed and fitted together without mortar. Considering the wharf has been built beside a swiftly flowing tidal steam and is subject to marine erosion, it is a tribute to the original builders that the structure has survived for more than 170 years.
Stonework of wharf with 1950s concrete platform on top. Photograph courtesy of J. La Roche.
Mortar has been used at later dates to pack between the stone blocks, although it was suggested this was the wrong thing to do. In the 1950s, a loading platform with a concrete surface was built on top of the original structure. In the 1980s, Ministry of Works staff undertook grouting work to hold the structure together. In 2015 the Thames-Coromandel District Council began a refurbishment project on the wharf that included restoration and protection of eroded stonework, recovery of stones from the sea bed, and rebuilding the walls and stone steps that lead from the wharf to the landing.
Heritage recognition
This place has been recognised by Heritage New Zealand as a Category 1 historic place (List no.4675): Old Stone Wharf: New Zealand Heritage List/Rarangi Korero information.
Find out more
Access
Daily passenger ferry services run from Whitianga, leaving Whitianga Wharf in Esplanade Road at regular intervals that vary according to the time of year. Alternatively the Old Stone Wharf can be reached by road via Cooks Beach to Ferry Landing.
Further reading
Birthell, J. Guide to the History of Whitianga, Thames, 1980.
McLintock, A.H, ed. 'Browne, Gordon Davies', in An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, originally published 1966. Te Ara –the Encyclopedia of New Zealand (updated 22 April 2008).
Thames-Coromandel District Council. "Old Ferry Landing Wharf Upgrade." Accessed September 1, 2017.
"New look for old stone wharf." Sun Live, 4 August 2016.
Rogers, F. 'Dacre, Ranulph - Biography', from the Dictionary of New Zealand Biography – Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand (updated 1 September 2010).
Location
The wharf is used as the passenger ferry landing on the eastern side of the Whitianga Harbour, opposite Whitianga township, Coromandel.
