On a very cool but sunny autumn morning, 48 members boarded the Coach for their annual Mystery trip, this year it was planned by Faye Sherriff and Philip Smith. Due to the damage to roads and bridges from Cyclone Gabrielle, unfortunately we could not access one part of the original planned trip.
From Taradale, an area rich in wine heritage dating back as far as the 1850s, as we travelled out towards the Esk Valley, the devastation caused by Gabrielle became more evident. Volunteers were busy at the Eskdale War Memorial Church, clearing away all the silt. The interdenominational church dedicated on 3 December 1920, was built by local landowner Thomas Clark and his daughter Annie in memory of Annie’s husband. Lieutenant Percival Moore Beattie, who was killed in action at Le Quesnoy on 4 November 1918. Two granite commemorative tablets were installed in the church; the larger listed the names of 26 other men from the district who had given their lives. The church had withstood the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake and the previous 1938 Esk Valley flood.
A short drive in the country via Hedgley and Seafield Roads took us to Bay View, then Ahuriri. Napier was once called Ahuriri. It was named for the great Maori chief Tu Ahuriri who cut a channel into the lagoon when the entrance became blocked. This area was a major site of Māori and European settlement, and the site of the Port of Napier until the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake. The wool-store and warehouse buildings are vital components of West Quay’s heritage. The distinctive saw-tooth roof lines, buildings located right on the street boundary, and the subdued colour scheme, give Ahuriri its special character.
Our first stop was to the Old Customhouse. Facing out to the Iron Pot area of Napier's Inner Harbour it served Napier from 1895 to 1953. When the Customhouse was threatened with demolition in later years, because of its age and poor state of repair, the Hawke's Bay Harbour Board stepped in and purchased the building, overseeing its restoration. In August 1989, the Harbour Board set up a trust to administer the building, for use as a meeting place and future maritime museum. The iron try-pot near the Customhouse is typical of those used by whalers for melting down blubber. Members were very interested in seeing the ships bell from HMS Veronica who just happened to be in Napier on February 3, 1931 when the earthquake hit. The Ship’s nameplate and its bell, were donated to the Napier City Council when HMS Veronica was paid off in the mid 1930s and remains a symbol of the comradeship between Napier and the Navy. The Veronica Bell Ceremony is held during the Art Deco weekend each year, when the ship’s bell from the HMS Veronica is paraded from the Old Customhouse Museum to the Marine Parade gardens. A military ceremony is performed here in remembrance of those who died in the earthquake of 1931.
Lunch was at the Crown Hotel in Ahuriri. The original Crown Hotel opened for business in 1859 but was destroyed by fire in the 1931 earthquake. At this time the new hotel was being built and was reduced to two levels due to the earthquake’s damage. The building has a Heritage Protection. By retaining its Art Deco exterior and interior detail such as the unique mosaic foyer, lead light windows and stairway it required a sign off from Art Deco Trust.
Photo 1 Eskdale War Memorial Church before Cyclone Gabrielle (Photo courtesy HB Today)
Photo 2 Eskdale War Memorial Church after Cyclone Gabrielle (Photo courtesy HB Today)
Photo 3 Old Customhouse
Photo 4 HMS Veronica Bell
Photo 5 Crown Hotel Ahuriri