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Grahamstown and Shortland, linked by Pollen
Street, were separate towns until they merged
in 1874 as the Borough of Thames, a few years
after the gold rush began in 1867.
TARARU, NORTH OF THAMES
Graham, having successfully laid out and
leased Graham’s Town, sought to develop the
potential he saw in Tararu, to the north, that
was also attracting mining interest.
To service this interest, he built a horsedrawn
tramway from Curtis’ Wharf to Victoria Street
to connect with the Government tramway that
ran up the Tararu Valley. A branch line ran to the
west down Wilson Street (Tararu) to connect
with the deep water wharf and adjacent hotel,
both of which he had constructed.
He also established a ‘pleasure garden’ in
Tararu, next to the Brown and Campbell battery
on Victoria Street. Newspaper reports of the
time show that indeed Graham’s gardens were
a real attraction, with family gatherings and
outings happening at the park, and a teahouse
serving its famous strawberries and cream.
A
lthough Scottish born Robert Graham
may not have spent much of his life in
Thames, he certainly left his mark – not
just on Grahamstown, which bears his name,
but on the small coastal village of Tararu, where
he planned to build a residential settlement.
Soon after the goldfields opened in 1867,
Graham secured the entire north section of the
valley with the assistance of Robert Mackay,
then Civil Commissioner for the Waihou and
Hauraki District. The area, first called Graham’s
Town then later Grahamstown, was located
between the Karaka and Waiotahi Streams.
Because of its proximity to the early producing
bonanza mines this area became the ‘CBD’,
with all manner of commercial and business
premises including shops, fancy hotels,
sawmills, churches, schools, mining buildings,
the stock trading corner (Scrip Corner),
banks, pubs (perhaps 100 of them!), as well
as significant industry, such as A&G Price,
established on site in 1871. It was also served
by three wharves: Holdship’s, Curtis’ and the
Burke Street ‘Goods Wharf’.
GRAHAMSTOWN
and TARARU
Shortland’s famous muddy streets, with kauri
boardwalks in front of buildings. This photo from
the 1870s was taken from corner of Grey and
Pollen Streets. Butt’s Shortland Hotel, shown
right, still stands.
Shortland evolves...
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COROMANDEL LIFE 2015 WINTER
ROBERT GRAHAM:
Shown below are buildings from the
Prince Alfred Battery, then The Big Pump, owned
by the United Pumping Association.
Second smokestack cluster is Tookie’s Flat.
The hillside track brings ore from the Caledonian
mine in the Moanataiari Valley (on the other side
of the spur), through which the tunnel with the
tramway passes.
The smaller wharf is the Burke Street Wharf (aka
Goods Wharf) whose pilings are still visible today.
a local journal, and stores of all descriptions.
There are four churches and chapels...
several small schools. The only drawback
to Shortland is the mud...you cannot walk
along the streets without danger of being
swamped.”
The need for timber for building was both
constant and imperative so that the kauri
timber resource was soon being processed
in Holdship’s and Stone’s sawmills. Stone
had a ship-building yard as well. The muddy
streets stayed busy with wheeled carts and
drays delivering building materials and then
machinery for the township and mines.
Shortland acted as the foothold for the early
days of the gold rush. It offered the first real
wharf at river’s mouth, sawmills, government
offices, and early hotels and businesses.
Grahamstown, to the north, and Shortland
developed separately, but the larger producing
gold mines were in Grahamstown. Over time
Grahamstown grew, while the Shortland
area languished; it evolved to serve more the
shipping, fishing, and farming interests.
And Mackay, with a huge workload, trying
to balance competing agendas and keep
everybody – politicians, pakeha, prospector
and Maori land-owner alike – happy (all
without adequate staff and funds) was soon to
be exhausted by it all.