1. INTRODUCTION 

Hands up who remembers having a cruise on the Waipa Delta!  Built in Tauranga in 1985 as a tribute to the paddles teamers Waipa and Delta, this replica was a floating restaurant for sightseers along the Waikato River. This 'story' is a history of the paddle steamers that were used as gunboats during the Waikato Land Wars and to transport passengers and cargo over the years along the Waikato River.   

2. GUNBOATS DURING WAIKATO LAND WARS: July 1863 - April 1864   

During the Waikato Land Wars, three paddle steamers  – Avon, Pioneer and Koheroa – were modified or  built as military transport by the New Zealand Colonial Government. They were used to  move the troops and supplies past the Māori fortifications along the Waikato River and Waipā  River. These steam vessels, commonly known as the ‘Waikato Flotilla’, were used to outflank the Māori positions at Meremere and Rangiriri, and to capture Ngāruawāhia.  For a summary of the role the vessels played and the navigational difficulties encountered on the riverbanks, see the National Museum of the Royal New Zealand Navy. For an outline drawing of the gunboats, see Waikato river gunboats 'The ironclads".

River Gunboat "Avon" - a paddle-wheel iron steamboat   

The Avon, which had been trading in Lyttelton, was  purchased by the New Zealand Government to use as a troopship.  The vessel  was 60 feet in length and weighed 40 tons. It was refitted at Onehunga in 1862 with iron-plates in its bulwarks, a Congreve rocket tube, and a 12-pounder Armstrong gun in its bows. In addition, four armoured barges (30 to 35 feet in length) were prepared for towing troops. Another vessel, the ‘Gymnotus’ was used for carrying stores.  The Avon was towed to the Waikato Heads on 25 July, 1863, by the H.M.S. “Eclipse".  (Source: New Zealand History:  Pioneer turret NZ Wars memorial, Ngāruawāhia)  As the Avon had reduced armour, she was deployed on the Waipā  River in January 1864. 

River Gunboat "Pioneer" - a stern-wheeled paddle steamer

This vessel was purpose-built for the New Zealand Government in 1863 by the Sydney-based Australian Steam Navigation Company. Originally named Waikato, the  name was changed to Pioneer after arriving in NZ on 3 October.  

The Pioneer  was a flat-bottomed, stern-wheeled paddle-steamer, 43 m long with a 6 m beam, and weighed 304 tons. It was modified in Onehunga with two revolving iron turrets measuring 2.4 m high and 3.6 m in diameter. Positioned fore and aft, the turrets protected 12-pounder Armstrong guns and provided loopholes for troops firing rifles and small arms. Powered by twin 30 hp engines and a 3.7 m (12 ft) stern wheel, the Pioneer could reach a top speed of 9 knots (17 kph).  

On 31 October 1863, 600 men of the 40th and 65th regiments boarded the Pioneer, the Avon and the four barges, which were towed by two steamers. The convoy was fired at as it steamed past Meremere before landing ten kms upriver.  However, the metal plating largely protected the vessel: "While one round penetrated plating and spoiled a barrel of beef, Pioneer was largely undamaged." (Source: New Zealand History).  The following day the British occupied the abandoned pā.   

The following was reported about the Pioneer by the Colonist in 1864: "After various trials she has been reduced to the position of a cargo-boat, and as such is of little value... We are now told that she has proved too long for the Waikato; "is headstrong and disobedient to her helm, manifests a great desire to walk on Shore and to stick there; has had her -cupolas removed and her armament reduced, and carries little or no cargo." 

Post-war, the Pioneer was used for transporting supplies and settlers until it was wrecked on the Manukau Bar in 1866 after slipping moorings at Port Waikato.  The turrets have been preserved as war memorials at Ngāruawāhia and Mercer.  For further information, see Wikipedia: Pioneer (Paddlesteamer) and  New Zealand History:  Pioneer turret NZ Wars memorial, Ngāruawāhia.   

River Gunboat "Koheroa" - Stern-wheeled 

The Koheroa  was built in Sydney, by P. N. Russell and Co.  The design used was by Chief Engineer Mr. James Stewart, of Auckland, who was sent to Sydney to oversee the work. The vessel was brought over in sections and reassembled at the Government's dockyard and stores depot at Putataka, Port Waikato.  

3. TRANSPORTATION FOR SETTLERS

As summarised by Te Ara, "Inland, rivers were the easiest transport routes. The Waikato River was navigable from Port Waikato to Cambridge and the Waipā as far as Alexandra (now Pirongia). Paddle steamers and barges plied both rivers, carrying freight, passengers, livestock and mail. The Waikato River system was used for freight until after the Second World War. However, shifting sandbars at Port Waikato, willow infestation and sediment build-up began to impede navigation. Port Waikato closed in 1955, heralding the end of most river transport." 

River Gunboat "Rangiriri" - a stern-wheel paddle steamer 

The Rangiriri was used to transport the first military settlers at Kirikiriroa (Hamilton) on 24 August 1864.  It had been commissioned by the New Zealand Government to be built in Sydney by  P. N. Russell and Co. but did not arrive in time to take part in the Land Wars.  The Rangiriri was then sold to a private company (Waikato Steam Navigation Company) in 1868 to transport passengers and cargo.    (See description of the Rangiiri by James C. Cowan in The New Zealand Wars.) 

4. WAIKATO STEAM NAVIGATION COMPANY

As well as private riverboat owners,  the Waikato Steam Navigation Company  operated river traffic - passengers and cargo. The Company built a large wharf and storage shed in Cambridge at the junction of the Waikato River and Karāpiro Stream.  In 1881 a new wharf was built below the west end of Duke Street, near the current site of  Cambridge Primary School. The cargo was hauled up the steep bank by a two-way trolley system operated by a stationary steam engine. The cargo included coal, timber and general building materials.  (Source: Waipā  District Council)  

The Company's riverboats:

The riverboats included the former gunboat Rangiriri, Bluenose, Waipā, Delta and Waikato.  The travel costs were described as follows:  "In 1876, Waikato Steam Navigation advertised freight from Auckland to Cambridge and Alexandra as: Up river 45/- [45 shillings, or 2 5s] a ton; Down rivers 35/- a ton; Timber 3/- a 100 ft; Cabin passenger 5/-; Deck passenger 3/6 [3 shillings 6 pence]; Horse 5/-; Buggy 5/-.   (Source: Waipā  District Council) 

Former river gunboat "Rangiriri" - a stern-wheel paddle steamer

The vessel was was bought from the Government in 1868 to transport passengers and cargo. 

The Rangiriri ran aground on the east bank of the Waikato River in 1889 near Parana Park and Memorial Park.  The stern paddle wheel and machinery were re-used on the Freetrader, which was originally built as a barge. The hulk was used over the years as a retaining wall and diving platform for swimmers. In 1981-82, the Rangiriri was salvaged and relocated opposite the Waikato Museum. In 2009, the hulk was restored and moved to a purpose-built shelter with a viewing platform for visitors.     

Paddle steamer "Bluenose"  

Built in Onehunga (1864), the Bluenose carried cargo and passengers, including the families of the 4th Waikato Militia who landed on the east bank of the Waikato River, nowadays known as Memorial Park. 

Paddle steamer "Delta" 

The Delta was launched in 1876 and journeyed from Ngāruawāhia–Alexandra (Pirongia) and Ngāruawāhia–Cambridge on alternate weeks. As well as a saloon cabin and a ladies’ cabin, the vessel had a large upper deck that could carry 100 passengers (or 300 sheep). 

Paddle steamer "Waipā"

Paddle steamer "Waikato"

5. Other paddle steamers

Paddle steamer "Freetrader" 

The Freetrader was built in 1890 as a barge, but was later equipped with the stern paddle wheel from the steamer Rangiriri, which went aground in 1889. 

Paddle steamer "Rawhiti II" 

The Rawhiti II, a 190 foot stern-wheeler, was built in Glasgow for Roose Shipping in 1925.  

Paddle steamer "Quickstep"

Paddle steamer "SS Alert"

Paddle steamer "SS Lillie"

Paddle steamer 'Manuwai"

6. UNIDENTIFIED paddle steamers on the Waikato River

7.  REPLICA Paddle steamer "Waipa Delta": 1985-2009

Built in Tauranga in 1985 as a tribute to the paddle steamers Waipa and Delta,  this replica paddle steamer was a floating restaurant. You could sit back and enjoy the scenery along the Waikato River whilst dining on board - luncheon, afternoon tea or dinner cruise.  In 2009, the Waipa Delta relocated to Auckland following resource consent issues with the Hamilton City Council for floating pontoons. Seeing it berthed at the Prince's Wharf awaiting passengers brought back nostalgic memories of its time in Hamilton.  After three years cruising on the Waitemata Harbour, the Waipa Delta was moved by new owners to Taupō and renamed Delta Taupo. See Waikato Times article.

Further information

• James Cowan, ‘Gunboats and Maori Cannoneers: The Romance of The Rail: A Descriptive and Historical Story of the North Island Main Trunk Railway’, in The New Zealand Railways Magazine, vol. 3, no. 2 (1 June 1928), p. 34
• James Cowan, ‘The River War Fleet’, in The New Zealand Wars: a history of the Maori campaigns and the pioneering period: Volume I: 1845–1864, R.E. Owen, Wellington, 1955, pp. 308–15
• Andy Dodd, ‘PS Rangiriri: the last remnant of “New Zealand’s first navy”’, Forts and Works, no. 25, June 2009, pp. 1–7
• Grant Howard, The navy in New Zealand, Reed, Wellington, 1981, pp. 11–12
• Grant Middlemiss. The Waikato River gunboats: the story of the gunboats used during the British invasion of the Waikato. Grant Middlemiss: Cambridge, 2014
• Neville Ritchie, ‘The Waikato War of 1863–64: a guide to the main events and sites’, Te Awamutu and District Museum, 2001
• J. O’C. Ross, The White Ensign in New Zealand, Reed, Wellington, 1967, pp. 87–8
• T. D. Taylor, New Zealand’s naval story, Reed, Wellington, 1948, pp. 108–9