Port of Greymouth

These are some photos I collected in December of 2011 along the old wharf at the mouth of the Grey River, in the town it gives it namesake to in the South Island of New Zealand.



Now unused, fenced and forgotten, “the commercial port began life in the gold rushes of the 1860's, however it was in the 1880's that investment in breakwaters, wharves, cranes and railways transformed Greymouth into a major coal shipping port to supply the growing New Zealand economy.” (1)

These ancient and sea-beaten timbers line the town-ward bank, and are over-shadowed by the silent but hulking cargo cranes which I understand to be “10-ton hydraulic cranes made by Stothert & Pitt” (2) installed between 1901-1904. (2)



“Coal and timber exports peaked… in the early 1900's, but declined… after the opening of the railway to the east coast in 1923.” Timber exports diminished from the 1950's as indigenous timber exports were restricted. With the discovery of natural gas in the North Island in 1969, the coal trade almost disappeared but recommenced with tug and barge services in 1988.” (1)

Now retired, these old cranes have been composed into a final heroic gesture, arms raised, facing the east with dusty cabin glass watching dimly the sun continue to rise each day. But they themselves will not move again, this pose is eternal, until salt and water erode old bones and they come crashing down.



See entire photostream here ‘Greymouth Wharf- 2011’


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1 “Port | Grey District Council.” Accessed February 9, 2013. http://www.greydc.govt.nz/council-services/port/.
2 “History | Grey District Council.” Accessed February 9, 2013. http://www.greydc.govt.nz/council-services/port/history/.