Moeraki

Moeraki holds the distinction of being the first European settlement in the South Island. But Moeraki's first inhabitants were the Rapuwai and Waitahi peoples. The first Europeans arrived on Boxing Day 1836, when John Hughes led a party ashore to set up a whaling station. One of his party, William Haberfield, wrote, 'The bush was growing down to the edge of the water... the pigeons would come and light on your heads and the kakas weren't frightened when they saw us.' Members of the Ngai Tahu tribe settled near the whaling station after Te Rauparaha's attack on their pa at Kaiapoi. The population was boosted by many whalers who stayed on to farm the land with their families after the number of whales declined. Missionaries, traders and surveyors arrived, and in the 1860s the Moeraki port played a key role in the shipping of Oamaru stone. Work started on the Iron Jetty in 1872. Costing 3000 pounds, it took a year to build, longer than was anticipated because of problems embedding the iron screw and pile construction in the sea bed. When you look at the skeleton of the Iron Jetty today, it's easy to see why the anchorage failed: the jetty was too high for smaller vessels. Commercial fishing, however, has remained an important industry, although the number of fishing boats using the port has declined from the 38 in 1898. Some fishers are now going in for recreational fishing and tourism.

Seven day South Island Photography Tour from Invercargill to Christchurch

Image Credit: A heavy sea at Moeraki, 1903, by George Butler. Gift of Mrs M Seaton in memory of her husband, 1938. Te Papa