The first Ōhiwa wharf

Shipping into Ōhiwa increased steadily from the early 1870s, especially when bad weather closed Ōpōtiki and Whakatāne harbours. At first, cargo was landed on the sandspit using small open boats known as lighters, a slow and sometimes dangerous process. Cattle were unloaded by swinging them out from the ship’s side in slings and dropping them in the water to swim ashore.

 

In 1896, the New Zealand Steamship Company (NSS Co.) built a wharf on the Ōhiwa spit. It was built like a 'T’, with a good-sized wharf shed at the end of a long timber causeway. 

 

In 1901 the NSS Co. began running two vessels weekly between Auckland and Ōhiwa. Outward cargo, such as maize or dairy products were brought to the wharf by barge from jetties around the harbour. As road access improved, horse-drawn wagons took over, then trucks. Local carrier, Allan Abbot, also carried goods and people along the beach to Ōpōtiki.

 

Imagine having to travel for 57 hours to get from Auckland to Ōhiwa on shaky horse-drawn carriages. In 1900 that was one option, or you could take a steam ship that took only 19 hours! 

 

In 1911, the wharf suddenly subsided. Although quick repairs were made, the erosion that caused the collapse continued to be a problem and in 1922 the wharf was abandoned. The NSS Co. stopped its service but this was not the end of the Ōhiwa shipping history...