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Old 20-07-2011, 20:41   #1
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Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

Does anyone know what happened to the classic ketch Raukawa?
I see on the historic photos CLassicYachts forum it was at the Clyde Quay Marina in Wellington (NZ) in 1958 or thereabouts.


From the Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club boat register come these details:
Raukawa.
Vessel Name:Raukawa
Builder:J. B. L. Jukes
Designer:L. H. Coolidge (Seattle, U.S.)
Place built:Balaena Bay, Wellington
Year built:1936
Construction:triple-planked NZ kauri on Tallow wood keel and rata floors
LOA:40
LWL:34
Beam:11
Rig:Bermuda ketch
Owners:C. A. Livingstone (Wellington 1936-1948-19??)


Notesraft 6. Began life with a gaff mainsail. Had a 3 cylinder Ailsa-Craig auxilliary. Designed specifically for C. A. Livingstone. Came second in the 1940 Wellington - Lyttelton race.

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Old 20-07-2011, 21:12   #2
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

When I looked up boats designed by L.E. Coolidge I came across this example: it is yawl as apposed to the other description of the Raukawa being a ketch.
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Old 21-07-2011, 12:02   #3
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

From another Classic Yachts Forum site was this old photograph of the Raukawa in Clyde Quay Marina at Wellington. (note this is the full photo, with the section showing the Raukawa) This photo was apparently taken in the late 1950's.

If at any stage there is information that someone wants to share privately you may email me at
rdeboer@nettel.net.nz
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Old 21-07-2011, 12:23   #4
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

Through information received there was a suggestion this boat was the so called Mystery Ketch of the Sounds Murders incidence in 1998.
I have no reason to believe any crime occurred on the boat, for all we know is that a man offered Ben Smart and Olivia Hope a berth to sleep in that morning.
That is not a crime, in fact just an act of kindness.
On this boat this trip was the Skipper (a wealthy NZ businessman) and Australian Police Officer (and his wife who also was an Australian Government employee) and another recently married couple. These people may not have been present that particular night, but their boat a one crew member was at least.


A lone sailor, Scott Watson of Picton, was charged with the murder of these two people. All throughout the years this has cause controversy as the evidence suggested the kids were taxied to an old style wooden ketch rather than to Watson’s small steel sloop
In the Police file disclosed to the defense on this case there is substantiated evidence for the presence of this boat but not the entire crew.


If these people were there they have never made statements of a form that were given to the defense team. It is possible they gave information that has been kept confidential and anonymous.
The name Raukawa is not mentioned in the file.
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Old 21-07-2011, 16:57   #5
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

Focused view of the Raukawa from the previously mentioned website.

I did get one reply quite early on "
by David Lackey » Sat Jul 09, 2011 3:30 pm
To the best of my recollection Raukawa (which is indeed the vessel in the two Clyde Quay boat harbour photos, and which I knew well - having moored adjacent to her for several years) was purchased by a young American and left NZ sometime in the 1980s.

She was certainly NEVER involved in the sounds murders.

She had no similarity to the beamy double ended Colin-Archer/Adkin-look-alike in your Chaffers Marina photo. As the photos show she was bluff forward but had a pronounced counter stern, and had a moderate beam - modest by today's cruiser standards - but carried it to the ends.

I don't recall a Rongomai but there is a Rongomau which is a completely different beast.

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Old 21-07-2011, 20:23   #6
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

Quote:
Originally Posted by Robittybob1 View Post
Focused view of the Raukawa from the previously mentioned website.

I did get one reply quite early on "
by David Lackey » Sat Jul 09, 2011 3:30 pm
To the best of my recollection Raukawa (which is indeed the vessel in the two Clyde Quay boat harbour photos, and which I knew well - having moored adjacent to her for several years) was purchased by a young American and left NZ sometime in the 1980s.

She was certainly NEVER involved in the sounds murders.

She had no similarity to the beamy double ended Colin-Archer/Adkin-look-alike in your Chaffers Marina photo. As the photos show she was bluff forward but had a pronounced counter stern, and had a moderate beam - modest by today's cruiser standards - but carried it to the ends.

I don't recall a Rongomai but there is a Rongomau which is a completely different beast.
My blog http://davidlackey.blogspot.com/
"She was certainly NEVER involved in the sounds murders"
One could only say that if they were personally aware of it's whereabouts at the time. That is the only certain way of being certain.

What does involved mean? There were 150 odd boats at Furneaux that night. How many of them were involved? So the logic is Raukawa could have been there like the rest but not involved.
If it was there but not on the official list of boats there it is right to be suspicious regarding this boat, whether or not it was involved.
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Old 22-07-2011, 09:36   #7
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

My original reply to David Lackey:
Thank you for that information David. You say Raukawa "was purchased by a young American and left NZ sometime in the 1980s." That maybe so, I have no idea, but you must remember, the "Sounds Murders" occurred in 1998 which is in other words years later. It may have been sold again, who knows, but as I have said I have been given that name as the name of a vessel that was at Furneaux".
David said: "She [Raukawa] was certainly NEVER involved in the sounds murders."
In my studies there were no murders at Furneaux so the case is a bit of a misnomer.

What I am not too sure at this stage is what country this forum is popular in? I was looking for a sailing forum from Australia, for there seemed to be a strong Australian connection.
My informant was a Kiwi living in Australia. He said there were his Australian wife, his sister and brother in law, who was an Australian Federal Police Officer.
There are reports of an Australian Police officer there but he was with a group that was not on a boat, but arrived and left on one of the charter vessels taking patrons to the New Years Eve party at Furneaux Lodge.

This officer has dealings with the person the NZ Police were originally looking for. In his statements and he appears to have drawn up an identikit picture of the initial suspect.
This identikit picture is never released to the News Media so we never got to see the face he drew (yet 2 other versions of the "sleazy man" were released.
It would seem unlikely the Australian would need to draw the identikit picture of his brother in law so the situation is odd to say the least.
For those who are not to familiar with the case there is still a lot of information easily found on Google, using search words like "Scott Watson" Furneaux, Ketch, Ben Smart, Olivia Hope.
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Old 22-07-2011, 15:36   #8
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

This is a note from the Op Tam file so it would be 1998 that this bit of evidence was submitted.
Op Tam was the name of the investigation into the disappearance of Ben Smart and Olivia Hope.
Could the old boat have been restored in 18 months or less?

"A guy advertised for a crew to take a boat to Australia. Boat was in rough condition. Can’t recall name. It sat in viaduct for some time. The characteristics of the boat in the paper corresponds to what it looks like. Commercial fisherman will remember the boat. The floating restaurant is now in the position this boat used to be in. The ports of Auckland will have a record as he would have had to pay charges whilst he was there. Distinctive portholes. I last saw it 18 months ago. The skipper of the boat at the time looks like one of the guys in the paper. He possibly had Maori blood in him but he wasn’t dark. The boat was quite capable of going off shore, but it wasn’t up to scratch. It had just come back from the islands."
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Old 22-07-2011, 17:38   #9
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

OK--I'll bite.
162 views, and not 1 comment from the masses.
Is there a purpose to this exercise, or just the OP's curiosity.
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Old 22-07-2011, 18:24   #10
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

Quote:
Originally Posted by Blue Stocking View Post
OK--I'll bite.
162 views, and not 1 comment from the masses.
Is there a purpose to this exercise, or just the OP's curiosity.
It is that one in a million that I'm after. Not many people will have any knowledge of this boat so I don't expect many replies. The difficult thing will be to see if I can keep the thread relevant long enough to find that person.
A convicted man's freedom depends on it.
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Old 22-07-2011, 18:43   #11
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

That's motivation enough. I wish you success.
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Old 22-07-2011, 18:52   #12
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

Quote:
Originally Posted by Blue Stocking View Post
That's motivation enough. I wish you success.
I've spent 11 years looking for the answer to this complicated murder inquiry. A group of us believe the conviction was wrong, and so does the man's parents.
Only recently has this new clue come up regarding the Raukawa. Where was it on the night in question. 31st Dec 1997 was it the Marlborough Sounds like Taranaki63 said? Did anyone help to prepare it for the trip across the Tasman? Must have been in a marina or boatyard somewhere in Adelaide possibly?
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Old 22-07-2011, 21:11   #13
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

I am tackling this problem by starting threads in boating forums. 4 have been started so far and 2 remain active. This one and the other,
Lord Jesus backs Scott Watson 's Pardon - Yachting and Boating World Forums
The other two New Zealand based ones received strong opposition and one was closed and the other I was permanently banned from the forum (no reason given.)
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Old 23-07-2011, 01:50   #14
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

Why would David Lackey be so concerned?
Re: Raukawa
by David Lackey » Mon Jul 11, 2011 9:26 pm
Mea culpa: I got sucked into this horseshit. I made a comment to that effect on the www.crew.org.nz forum (where this guy was posting) and should have stuck to my guns.

This, to my mind, is one of the downsides of anonymity on forums such as this.

David Lackey

My blog WHILE I THINK OF IT....

David Lackey was/is the husband of New Zealand's former High Commissioner to Canada and Australia, and former Vice Commodore of the Royal port Nicholson Yacht Club (Wellington NZ).
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Old 23-07-2011, 15:24   #15
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Re: Hunting for the 'Raukawa'

I banned him from Crew.org.nz. The guy is a couple of sandwiches short of a picnic and is doing his own cause (which strangely enough I support) more harm than good. Wait for his posts to deteriorate to more or less totally incomprehensible, or check this out.
Crew.org.nz • View topic - Watson / Hope / Smart - Bizarre Letter Recieved
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