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Welcome > LOCAL STORIES > Wm Moore and Mawhiti

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For more information and images on Mawhiti, visit here

Mawhiti, pictured here, was built in the shed at the left of the picture, and launched in 1898. The site is on Oriental Parade, on the section now fronting Chaffers Park or New World supermarket.

 

 

 

When completed, Mawhiti would not fit through the doors of the shed in which she was built, and the shed owner would not let any modifications be done to the building to extricate her. This problem was solved by a crew of Mawhiti's people cutting away a section of the wall one night, depositing her on the street, and reattaching the wall before morning! If you study the higher resolution image here, a cut from floor to roof can be discerned by the sash window.

Mawhiti was a 2 1/2 rater, and was an instant success against other yachts in her class. She was sent with a new owner to Sydney in 1908, where she remained a crack race boat for over 50 years. Her trail goes cold during the 1970s, but we hope she is still around.

William Moore's grandson runs a website dedicated to her history and can be viewed here. If you know anything about her or her current whereabouts, please contact us.

Below: Mawhiti in Sydney in 1910.

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Gavin Pascoe