Waipapa Point

Lighthouse overview 

Waipapa Point is located at the southern end of the Catlins region, east of Invercargill on the south coast of the South Island. 

History of Waipapa Point Lighthouse 

Waipapa Point marks the scene of New Zealand’s worst civilian shipwreck. On 29 April 1881, 131 people drowned when the passenger steamer Tararua was wrecked on a reef off the point. Tararua was on its regular trip between Otago and Melbourne via Bluff. 

The sad tale of the wreck, in which only 20 of the 151 on board survived, is explained in Ingram’s New Zealand Shipwrecks. 

“A particularly heavy sea swept over the forepart, and nearly a score of people were washed overboard. Only one person, the chief cook, succeeded in reaching the shore safely, after making a gallant but unsuccessful attempt to save a lady passenger. Towards evening those still surviving were forced to take refuge in the rigging and on one occasion were heard cheering by those on shore; it was supposed at the sight of the steamer Kahanui steaming from the Bluff. Up till 11pm lights in the rigging were occasionally seen, as though matches were being burned. At 2.35am on April 30 the closing tragedy in the disaster occurred. Those on the beach heard the piercing shrieks from the doomed people on the Tararua, and a voice, said to be that of the captain, calling for a boat, which could not be sent, as the Chief Officer’s boat was damaged when it capsized, and could not be repaired. At daybreak the steamer had sunk almost out of sight, and bodies were coming ashore.” 

After the shipwreck, a Court of Inquiry recommended that a light be built on the point. A light was ordered from England. Work began on building the wooden tower and houses for three keepers and their families.  

Waipapa Point had the second‑to‑last wooden lighthouse tower built in New Zealand. The light was it on New Year’s Day in 1884. 

Two other recommendations from the Court of Inquiry marked an important turning point in New Zealand’s maritime safety procedures. From 1882, lifebelts had to be provided for every person on board a ship, and crews had to practise lifeboat evacuation regularly. 

Near the tower is a small plot of land known as the Tararua Acre, where many of the bodies recovered from the wreck are buried. 

Operation of the light 

The lighthouse was automated in 1975 and the last keepers left that year. 

In 1988, the site was converted from mains to solar power and a modern filament lamp beacon installed. 

In 2008, an LED beacon was installed on the balcony of the lighthouse. This light is powered by a battery (charged by solar panels). 

Life at Waipapa Point Lighthouse 

The lighthouse at Waipapa Point was close to the port town of Fortrose, meaning families could get supplies, attend church, and send their children to the local school. 

Despite the relative closeness of Fortrose, Waipapa Point was still isolated. The isolation may have contributed to one of the keepers taking his own life in 1903. This keeper had been in the lighthouse service for 25 years, since he was 21.