The Enderby Settlement : Auckland Islands
“Englishman Charles Enderby hoped to set
up a whaling base and farming settlement on the Auckland Islands. In 1849 and
1850, 200 settlers arrived from Britain. They built a town, Hardwicke (named
after the ship that brought them there, “Earl
of Hardwicke”), but agriculture was difficult and they left in 1852”.
Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand
This book is about Charles
Enderby and his failed attempt to set up his whaling station. In 1849 the
whales were scarce and he discovered that the Maori were already there, they
had understood the islands to be uninhabited. The HMS Fly had visited the
islands some time previously but neglected to pass on the correct information,
Maori had been living there for some 8 years by that time.
Never the less they went
ashore and attempted to set up their new colony but it was to be a disaster, it
was too isolated and a very stormy climate, so together with the inexperienced
settlers, this meant that by 1852 they had given up. They upped sticks and took
everything, not even a trace of the grand Government House was left behind!
Government House was
described as “A splendid wooden house – English built – 14 rooms” see pg. 61.
A fascinating story of New
Zealand’s history on the Auckland Islands. The author sadly passed away before
his work was published.
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| This map shows where the settlement was sited, from page 15 of this book. |
