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Story: Shipping

Brigantine at Riverton, about 1860

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Brigantine at Riverton, about 1860

Small sailing ships linked colonial New Zealand’s rough and dangerous sea ports. Riverton began as a whaling station and remained a coastal port in the early 20th century.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: PA2-2760

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Gavin McLean, Shipping – The era of sail, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/5668/brigantine-at-riverton-about-1860 (accessed 25 June 2026).

Story by Gavin McLean, published 2 March 2009, updated 1 January 2016.