Mechanics Bay
Encyclopedia
Mechanics Bay is the name of a former bay (now filled in) on the Waitemata Harbour
in Auckland City
, New Zealand
. It is also the name used to describe the area of the former bay that is now mainly occupied by commercial and port facilities. Sometimes the bay formed between Tamaki Drive and the western reclamation edge of Fergusson container terminal is referred to as Mechanics Bay.
and St Stephen's Point in Parnell
were four bays; Official Bay, Mechanics Bay, St Georges Bay & Judges Bay (some of these bays have now disappeared due to land reclamation and the quarrying of the bordering headlands). Closest to Point Britomart was "Official Bay" so-called because most of the Government Officials during the 1840s chose to live there.
Almost continuous with Official Bay was Mechanics Bay (so-called because this was where the labour force that the government had brought with it to construct the new Capital were housed). Mechanics Bay contained the mouth of the stream issuing from the Springs in the Domain to the south. The Bay had a broad, flat beach where Māori had long been in the habit of beaching their waka
(canoes).
Next to Mechanics Bay was St Georges Bay and then "Judges Bay" so-called because three of the magistrates of the early colony built their houses there. Next to Judges Bay is St Stephen's point, where a small chapel was built.
As early as the 1860s this shore front began to be modified by the European settlers. In particular it was in order to get the railway tracks around to the bottom of Queen Street that Point Britomart was quarried away and Official Bay & Mechanics Bay filled in. Initially the railway tracks came through the gully that lay between the Auckland Domain and the suburb of Parnell
, but later when a second route was formed further to the east through Meadowbank the shoreline between Mechanics Bay and Hobson Bay was also modified. This was when St Georges Bay ceased to exist and became the shunting yard for the railway station and Judges Bay was separated from the Harbour by a railway embankment.
The major thoroughfare of Mechanics Bay is Beach Road, so-called because it once ran around the beach front of the now reclaimed Mechanics Bay. Here is located the former main Auckland railway station
, an impressive brick 1930s structure, designed by Gummer and Ford
. Formerly located at the bottom of Queen Street the railway station was relocated here to be the centrepiece for the new downtown business area of Auckland. The plan was not a success and the Station has recently been decommissioned and the railway terminal reinstated back in its original location at the bottom of Queen Street. This "new" station is the Britomart Transport Centre
, and is proving a great success. (Note: The station moved each time, not the building.)
via India, Singapore and Australia connected with TEAL
for the Sydney to Auckland leg. Flights by Pan American
from America via Hawaii also landed at Auckland. The Short Solent or Boeing flying boats landed in Mechanics Bay, which was the centre of international aviation for New Zealand until the 1950s. Even after the formation of Auckland International Airport
at Mangere in the 1960s, Mechanics Bay was still used by flying boats to the Pacific Islands, eg for the Coral Route to Fiji.
From 1962 to 1989, Mechanics Bay was home to first Tourist Air Travel, then Mount Cook Airline
then Sea Bee Air operating a fleet of Grumman Goose
, Grumman Widgeon
and Grumman Turbo Goose amphibian aircraft for regular scheduled passenger and freight services to the islands of the Hauraki Gulf (particularly Great Barrier and Waiheke Islands) and operated charter flights to other areas such as the Bay of Islands, Manukau & Kaipara harbours and elsewhere around the country and to Pacific islands. Operating from what is now the Marine Rescue Centre, they were located near Compass Dolphin (since destroyed in a fierce storm in the early 1990s).
Mechanics Bay also has a heliport, which is the base for a number of sightseeing and commercial flight companies, as well as the base for the Westpac Rescue Helicopter
. It is located next to the Auckland Marine Rescue Centre
at the eastern end of the Ports of Auckland
container terminal.
On the corner of Stanley Street and Parnell Rise is the "Strand Hotel". This building is almost overpowered by the busy intersection and by the railway viaduct passing close to it. When the "Strand Hotel" was built in the 1840s as the "Swan Hotel" it stood directly on the quayside as a waterfront pub. Just opposite it on the other corner of Stanley Street stood the Native Hostel.
Long before the Europeans arrived, Māori had beached their wakas
on the broad flat beach just here and right from the founding of Auckland in 1840 into the late 20th century this portion of land was reserved for their use. The 19th century hostel buildings only disappeared in the 1970s, when they were replaced by a depot for the New Zealand Post Office.
Further up Stanley street and backing onto the Auckland Domain
are two sports grounds; Carlaw Park
, an important venue for Tennis in Auckland and the Auckland Bowling Club, founded in the 1861 and the oldest in the southern hemisphere.
Conveniently located State secondary schools are Auckland Grammar School
, Epsom Girls Grammar School, Baradene College of the Sacred Heart
and St Peter's College
.
Waitemata Harbour
The quite famous Waitemata Harbour is the main access by sea to Auckland, New Zealand. For this reason it is often referred to as Auckland Harbour, despite the fact that it is only one of two harbours surrounding the city, and is crossed by the Auckland Harbour Bridge. The Waitemata forms the north...
in Auckland City
Auckland City
Auckland City was the city and local authority covering the Auckland isthmus and most of the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, in the North Island of New Zealand. On 1 November 2010 it was amalgamated into the wider Auckland Region under the authority of the new Auckland Council...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. It is also the name used to describe the area of the former bay that is now mainly occupied by commercial and port facilities. Sometimes the bay formed between Tamaki Drive and the western reclamation edge of Fergusson container terminal is referred to as Mechanics Bay.
Settlement
Along the harbour shore between Point BritomartPoint Britomart
Point Britomart is a former headland in the Waitemata Harbour, Auckland, New Zealand. Located between Commercial Bay and Official Bay, it was later quarried away to produce fill for land reclamation in Mechanics Bay, and no physical trace remains at street level in what is today an area of the...
and St Stephen's Point in Parnell
Parnell, New Zealand
Parnell is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is often billed as Auckland's "oldest suburb" since it dates from the earliest days of the European settlement of Auckland in 1841...
were four bays; Official Bay, Mechanics Bay, St Georges Bay & Judges Bay (some of these bays have now disappeared due to land reclamation and the quarrying of the bordering headlands). Closest to Point Britomart was "Official Bay" so-called because most of the Government Officials during the 1840s chose to live there.
Almost continuous with Official Bay was Mechanics Bay (so-called because this was where the labour force that the government had brought with it to construct the new Capital were housed). Mechanics Bay contained the mouth of the stream issuing from the Springs in the Domain to the south. The Bay had a broad, flat beach where Māori had long been in the habit of beaching their waka
Waka (canoe)
Waka are Māori watercraft, usually canoes ranging in size from small, unornamented canoes used for fishing and river travel, to large decorated war canoes up to long...
(canoes).
Next to Mechanics Bay was St Georges Bay and then "Judges Bay" so-called because three of the magistrates of the early colony built their houses there. Next to Judges Bay is St Stephen's point, where a small chapel was built.
As early as the 1860s this shore front began to be modified by the European settlers. In particular it was in order to get the railway tracks around to the bottom of Queen Street that Point Britomart was quarried away and Official Bay & Mechanics Bay filled in. Initially the railway tracks came through the gully that lay between the Auckland Domain and the suburb of Parnell
Parnell, New Zealand
Parnell is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is often billed as Auckland's "oldest suburb" since it dates from the earliest days of the European settlement of Auckland in 1841...
, but later when a second route was formed further to the east through Meadowbank the shoreline between Mechanics Bay and Hobson Bay was also modified. This was when St Georges Bay ceased to exist and became the shunting yard for the railway station and Judges Bay was separated from the Harbour by a railway embankment.
The major thoroughfare of Mechanics Bay is Beach Road, so-called because it once ran around the beach front of the now reclaimed Mechanics Bay. Here is located the former main Auckland railway station
Auckland railway station
Auckland Railway Station is the former main railway station of Auckland, New Zealand, and is located on the eastern edge of the Auckland CBD near Mechanics Bay...
, an impressive brick 1930s structure, designed by Gummer and Ford
Gummer and Ford
Gummer and Ford was an architectural firm founded in 1923 in Auckland, New Zealand by William John Gummer and C. Reginald Ford. It was among the country's best-regarded architectural firm of the first half of the 20th century, designing numerous iconic buildings, including the former National Art...
. Formerly located at the bottom of Queen Street the railway station was relocated here to be the centrepiece for the new downtown business area of Auckland. The plan was not a success and the Station has recently been decommissioned and the railway terminal reinstated back in its original location at the bottom of Queen Street. This "new" station is the Britomart Transport Centre
Britomart Transport Centre
Britomart Transport Centre is the CBD public transport hub of Auckland, New Zealand, and the northern terminus of the North Island Main Trunk line. It combines a bus interchange with a railway station in a former Edwardian post office, extended with expansive post-modernist architectural elements...
, and is proving a great success. (Note: The station moved each time, not the building.)
Aviation
The first aeroplanes connecting New Zealand with the rest of the world in the 1930s were Flying Boats. International flights from Britain by Imperial AirwaysImperial Airways
Imperial Airways was the early British commercial long range air transport company, operating from 1924 to 1939 and serving parts of Europe but especially the Empire routes to South Africa, India and the Far East...
via India, Singapore and Australia connected with TEAL
TEAL
Tasman Empire Airways Limited was the forerunner of Air New Zealand. It was first registered in Wellington as a limited liability company on 26 April 1940....
for the Sydney to Auckland leg. Flights by Pan American
Pan American World Airways
Pan American World Airways, commonly known as Pan Am, was the principal and largest international air carrier in the United States from 1927 until its collapse on December 4, 1991...
from America via Hawaii also landed at Auckland. The Short Solent or Boeing flying boats landed in Mechanics Bay, which was the centre of international aviation for New Zealand until the 1950s. Even after the formation of Auckland International Airport
Auckland International Airport
Auckland Airport is the largest and busiest airport in New Zealand with over 13 million passengers a year, expected to more than double by 2025...
at Mangere in the 1960s, Mechanics Bay was still used by flying boats to the Pacific Islands, eg for the Coral Route to Fiji.
From 1962 to 1989, Mechanics Bay was home to first Tourist Air Travel, then Mount Cook Airline
Mount Cook Airline
Mount Cook Airline is an airline based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is wholly owned by Air New Zealand and operates scheduled services throughout the country under the Air New Zealand Link brand...
then Sea Bee Air operating a fleet of Grumman Goose
Grumman Goose
The Grumman G-21 Goose amphibious aircraft was designed as an eight-seat "commuter" plane for businessmen in the Long Island area. The Goose was Grumman’s first monoplane to fly, its first twin-engined aircraft, and its first aircraft to enter commercial airline service...
, Grumman Widgeon
Grumman Widgeon
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Donald, David. The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1997. ISBN 0-7607-0592-5....
and Grumman Turbo Goose amphibian aircraft for regular scheduled passenger and freight services to the islands of the Hauraki Gulf (particularly Great Barrier and Waiheke Islands) and operated charter flights to other areas such as the Bay of Islands, Manukau & Kaipara harbours and elsewhere around the country and to Pacific islands. Operating from what is now the Marine Rescue Centre, they were located near Compass Dolphin (since destroyed in a fierce storm in the early 1990s).
Mechanics Bay also has a heliport, which is the base for a number of sightseeing and commercial flight companies, as well as the base for the Westpac Rescue Helicopter
Westpac Rescue Helicopter (New Zealand)
The Auckland Westpac Rescue Helicopter is a New Zealand accident and emergency rescue and transport service operated by the Auckland Regional Rescue Helicopter Trust. The Trust operates two BK117-850 D2 helicopters on behalf of the helicopter owners - the greater Auckland community...
. It is located next to the Auckland Marine Rescue Centre
Auckland Marine Rescue Centre
The Auckland Marine Rescue Centre is the control centre for the Coastguard Northern Region and Surf Lifesaving Northern Region, New Zealand . It also houses other marine services such as the Harbourmaster and the Maritime Police...
at the eastern end of the Ports of Auckland
Ports of Auckland
Ports of Auckland Limited , the successor to the Auckland Harbour Board, is the company administering Auckland's commercial freight and cruise ship harbour facilities...
container terminal.
Surrounding area
At its eastern end where Beach Road turns into Parnell Rise is a major intersection, over which the railway is carried on a metal viaduct. The road to the north is The Strand which follows the shore line of the reclaimed St Georges Bay. The road to the south is Stanley Street, which turns into Grafton Road as it ascends the hill towards the hospital and Auckland Domain. Stanley Street is named for Mrs Stanley, who lived in the area during the 1850s and ran a well known and apparently well regarded girls school.On the corner of Stanley Street and Parnell Rise is the "Strand Hotel". This building is almost overpowered by the busy intersection and by the railway viaduct passing close to it. When the "Strand Hotel" was built in the 1840s as the "Swan Hotel" it stood directly on the quayside as a waterfront pub. Just opposite it on the other corner of Stanley Street stood the Native Hostel.
Long before the Europeans arrived, Māori had beached their wakas
Waka (canoe)
Waka are Māori watercraft, usually canoes ranging in size from small, unornamented canoes used for fishing and river travel, to large decorated war canoes up to long...
on the broad flat beach just here and right from the founding of Auckland in 1840 into the late 20th century this portion of land was reserved for their use. The 19th century hostel buildings only disappeared in the 1970s, when they were replaced by a depot for the New Zealand Post Office.
Further up Stanley street and backing onto the Auckland Domain
Auckland Domain
The Auckland Domain is Auckland's oldest park, and at 75 hectares one of the largest in the city. Located in the central suburb of Grafton, the park contains all of the explosion crater and most of the surrounding tuff ring of the Pukekawa volcano....
are two sports grounds; Carlaw Park
Carlaw Park
Carlaw Park was a multi-purpose stadium in Parnell, a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand.-History:The stadium's grandstands and terraces were built in 1916, and it became the home of rugby league in Auckland from 1921...
, an important venue for Tennis in Auckland and the Auckland Bowling Club, founded in the 1861 and the oldest in the southern hemisphere.
Conveniently located State secondary schools are Auckland Grammar School
Auckland Grammar School
Auckland Grammar School is a state secondary school for years 9 to 13 boys in Auckland, New Zealand. It had a roll of 2,483 in 2008, including a number of boarders who live in nearby Tibbs' House, making it one of the largest schools in New Zealand...
, Epsom Girls Grammar School, Baradene College of the Sacred Heart
Baradene College of the Sacred Heart
Baradene College of the Sacred Heart is a Catholic high school for girls aged between 11 to 18 located in Remuera, Auckland, New Zealand.Established 1909, Baradene celebrated its 100th year in 2009....
and St Peter's College
St Peter's College, Auckland
St Peter's College is a Catholic college for year 7 to 13 boys . The school, located in Auckland, is one of the largest Catholic schools in New Zealand and is an integrated school under an integration agreement entered into by the Catholic Bishop of Auckland and the Government of New Zealand in...
.
External links
- Sikorski S-40 at Mechanics Bay, 1937
- Mechanics Bay in 1880s
- Mechanics Bay from Supreme Court, 1880s
- Phillip Treweek's Widgeon page with history of TAT/MCA/SBA Mechanics Bay Widgeons
- Phillip Treweek's Goose page with ZK DFC and history of Sea Bee Air Goose Aircraft
- Sea Bee Air Goose at Mechanics Bay
- ZK DFC
- ZK-ERX Sea Bee Air 1982-1984