PĀTĪTĪ POINT RESERVE
South Street, Pātītī Point, Timaru
Tripots were used by whalers to render whale blubber. It was also used on the Sutherlands farm before being placed at this site.
Can you sing the Weller man sea shanty? The viral popularity of the sea shanty "The Wellerman" sparked renewed interest in New Zealand's era of shore-based whaling. The song references the Weller Brothers, who operated one of the most prominent whaling stations at Ōtākou, near present-day Dunedin. Their business was central to the whaling economy of the southern Pacific and deeply intertwined with local Māori communities, many of whom worked at or near these stations and engaged in trade and kinship ties with European whalers. Remarkably, the world of the Wellerman reached far beyond Aotearoa: in 1842, Herman Melville, the future author of Moby-Dick, briefly worked aboard a Weller-operated whaling ship. For that brief time, the literary giant was literally a "Weller man," linking the cultural mythology of the Pacific whaling frontier with one of the most enduring works of American literature. While Timaru wasn’t the Weller Brothers’ central hub, it was part of their broader South Island whaling network, and likely saw regular activity from their crews and partners.
The trying-down pots: a busy scene at Te Kaha Whaling Station. 1919-12-11 photo published in Auckland Weekly News; Pahewa, H, showing Whale blubber being heated in try pots at the Te Kaha Whaling Station to extract the oil. - https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/photos/id/228958 This item is suitable for commercial use, without further permission.