Days of Sail

THE DAYS OF SAIL

PASSING OF THE SCOW – OLD BOATS AND THEIR SKIPPERS

By THE LOOKOUT MAN – appearing in the Auckland Star 4 February 1933

Lacking the graceful lines and snowy canvas of the schooners, the ‘scows,’ typically Auckland craft, were a feature on the harbour 20 to 30 years ago, when they played an important part in the development of the timber trade of the port.

There are still a few scows left of the numerous fleet built by George Niccol , of Devonport, Darroch of Big Omaha, and others, who turned out a constant stream of these square bilge freighters of timber and coal from the coastal ports. Their race on Regatta Day died out ten years ago, and it would be difficult to raise enough now to form a race.

The early scows

The first scows were ungainly craft. Squarely built, with short bluff bows, they were not good at sailing. Later an improved type was built, several of them having three masts, and they sailed to Australia. ’Arrah-Na-Pogue’ and ‘Caed Mille Failthe’ were two. I think they are still running there, but under different names.

Amongst the earlier bluff-bowed scows I remember were ‘Lady of the Lake’, Frank Josephs in charge, and ‘Ghost’, Rory Matheson. The latter was once lying laden with coal for the Devonport Gas Works, and lay off the old Devonport Wharf at the foot of Church Street. A heavy gale from the east drove the scow right through the wharf, and she fetched up on the rocks near the Ferry Company’s slip, where the Devonport Yacht Clubhouse is now situated.

Other old-timers were the ‘Lagoon’, Geo. Broadfoot, ‘Una’, Fred Morgan, ‘Olive’, Peter Petersen, ‘Totara’, John McKenzie, ‘Rata’, W. Peney, ‘Hauturu’ (Maori name for the Little Barrier,meaning north west wind), E. Sellars, ‘Dungaroon’, Ted Donovan, ‘Ruakaka’, John King, ‘Pukapuka’, Jack Murchison, ‘Progress’, Geo. Dobson, ‘Lake St. Clair’, Fred Morgan, ‘Orakei’, Adam Byers, ‘Norah’, Alex McKenzie, ‘Moehau’, Jack Kingdom (who only passed over the border a few months ago at Albany), ‘Margaret’, W. Motion, ‘ Hobsonville’, F. Josephs.

Bigger Scows Built

At a later period scows were gradually built longer and given more beam and an approach to a schooner bow, while extra sails, as the main-topmast staysail, were added. Some of these were the ‘Paris’, W. Paul, ‘Maggie’, J. Kasper, ‘Vixen’, A. Blackwell, ‘Hilda’, Geo. Rolfe, ‘Waipu’, Chas. Anderson, ‘Bee’, J. Moller, ‘Rimu’, Geo. Darroch, ‘Ida’, W. Tenatahi (of the Little Barrier, from where he was later evicted by the officials and lived at Little Omaha for many years after, overlooking his old home), ‘May’, Sam Clare, ‘Thistle’, Geo. Jamieson, ‘Annie’, Bob Caitcheon, ‘Ranger’, Geo. Page, ‘Rover’, Ike Fletcher, ‘Irene’, W. Copeland.

The Largest Scows

Later still the type of scow improved until we got the fine craft like ‘Excelsior’ and ‘Shamrock’, W.Burke, with good sheer, ample beam and fine bows (very different to the old Ghost type). Others of the later build were ‘Kia Ora’, E. Piercy, ‘Waikonini’, F. Anderson, ‘Havoc’, Jack Ellsworth, ‘Tally-Ho’, Andrew Nelson, ‘Wanderer’, Chas. Daniels, ‘Hero’, Jim Nieuman, ‘Tramp’ Ike Corbett, ‘Seagull’, Ted Guerney,  ‘Gannet’, L. Vasta, ‘Moa’, Bob McKinley, ‘Esme’, J. Finlay, ‘Huia’, Tom Hyams, ‘Dominion’, Jack Dowd, ‘Ngaru’, Frank Fletcher, ‘Pahiki’, Archie McCallum, ‘Edith’, Johnnie Ericksen, ‘Ethel Wells’, Steve Wells, ‘Vindex’, W. Biddick, “Vesper’, J. Biddick.

Passing of the Timber Scow

Most of the above named scows carried timber, firewood or produce all on deck. When the timber trade eased off the boats had to look for other avenues of trade, and as goods were more perishable than timber, baulk or flitch, a type of scow was evolved with accommodation for cargo below decks, with in some cases auxiliary power. At the same time many of the really big scows were found too unwieldy and required too many hands to work them profitably and the boats were built smaller. Some of this type gradually getting smaller were ‘Bravo’, Joe Goomez, ‘Talisman’, Fred Jones, ‘Oban’, A. McKenzie, ‘Scot’, N. Matheson, ‘Kahu’, Ned Welsen, ‘Haeremai’, W. Fletcher, ‘Herald’, Rountree, ‘Altair’, Geo. Diaz, ‘Alert’, Harry Pedersen, ‘Haere’, J. Soares and the three-masted scows (about the last big ones to be built), ‘Pirate’, J. Stenbeck, ‘Hawk’, Sid Irvine (now so well known to all sword fishermen off Cape Brett), ‘Whangaroa’, Ohlsen, ‘Korora’, Barney McDermott and ‘Zingara’ Fred Jensen.

A Scow Master’s Strategy

A number of the smaller scows were owned by Captain Gibbs of Devonport, better known to the boating fraternity as “Daddy” Gibbs. One morning one of Captain Gibbs’ scows, in charge of Captain ‘X’, was beating up the harbour with a westerly wind a few hours before daybreak. On a board towards Devonport she stood inshore too far, and ran into the ‘Spray’ at her moorings, doing a fair amount of damage to the old yacht. Captain ‘X’, knowing that he would get into trouble if he was found out, decided to clear out again, and he ran back towards Tiri. He was about half way out to Tiri at daylight, when he turned and made a second entry into port, keeping well on the town side and arriving about 9.30 a.m. In the meantime Captain Gibbs, who was always an early riser, had discovered the damage to the Spray, and made inquiries all round, but, knowing only of the second entry of Captain ‘X’, never asked him any questions. Captain ‘X’ died 20 year ago, and, as the veteran skipper of Spray has followed in his wake, there can be no harm in recalling the incident. The blame for the damage was generally attributed to the all-night ferry ‘Ruru’, and the late Mr Alex. Alison, then manager of the company, paid the repair bill.

Scows First Race in 1881 

Like the crews of the cutters and schooners the scow men entered keenly into the race for their class at the Auckland regattas. Every slip was at a premium days before the 29^th of January, when their huge wooden centreboards and bottoms were smoothed off and copper painted, sails and running gear overhauled and renewed. Occasionally the scows were allowed to race in the small traders’ race. But later they had a race to themselves for many years.

The first race for scows at the Anniversary Regatta was in 1881. The competitors were ‘Moehau’, ‘Totara’ and ‘Pukapuka’. “Moehau’ won. In 1882 ‘Pukapuka’, ‘Olive’ and ‘Lady of the Lake’ competed, and ‘Olive’ won. ‘Vixen’ the Biddick’s fast scow, built to carry cattle, won for several years running, keeping the other boats out of it, until in 1890 the present system of handicapping was introduced, and it caught on at once, the entries being ‘Ida’, ‘Irene’, ‘Pukapuka’, ‘Hauturu’ and ‘Dungarvon’, and from this on entries were good.

In the regatta of 1909 there were 15 starters in the scow race. Positions were always drawn for on entry night. No.1 being next to Queen Street wharf. On the regatta morning the scows lay at anchor off the wharf “line abreast”. At their start anchors were got aboard and head sails and extras set, for the skippers were good at “cracking on”. The course was round Tiri or round Rangitoto and Motutapu, and they usually finished about 4 p.m., but at times they were later, and once or twice the race did not finish until the next morning.