For as long as people have lived in the area, Caroline Bay has been a place for gathering food. Mahinga kai or mahika kai literally means "to work the food" and refers to the traditional value of food resources and their ecosystems, as well as the practices involved in producing them. Early survey maps identify the name Pohatu-koko in connection with a stream and a peninsula, which was later known as Caroline Bay.

The area featured a natural bay that was useful for anchoring ships nearby and landing smaller boats on the shore. References to Caroline Bay go back at least as far as the whaling era. At that time, the name referred to the entire stretch of coast from Washdyke to Patiti Point. The whalers, including Māori crew members, lived and worked in harsh, isolated conditions in Timaru. They named and used geographical features like Pohatu-koko stream (now mostly underground), and it was in this context that place names such as Caroline Bay emerged. The whaling station itself was a short-lived venture, abandoned after just two seasons due to business failure. 

LEFT A try pot used at the Weller Bros Whaling Station near this place 1839-1840. The Wellers’ workers caught whales and rendered the blubber down into oil in try pots for two seasons Members of the whaling gang were the first white men to live even temporarily in South Canterbury. RIGHT Looking up towards the viaduct near the Evans St and Wai-iti Rd intersection where the stream runs underground. Photograph courtesy of Roselyn Fauth

In 1839, the Weller brothers; Joseph, George, and Edward, established a short-lived whaling station at Patiti Point in Timaru 1839-1840, marking the first European settlement in South Canterbury. This venture was part of their broader whaling operations along New Zealand's southern coast, which included multiple stations from Otago Harbour to Banks Peninsula. ​The Timaru station operated near a stream known as Pohatu-Koko, or "Whaler’s Creek," which has since been piped underground but is commemorated in local heritage projects. A try pot used for rendering whale blubber from this station is displayed at the South Canterbury Museum, serving as a tangible link to the area's early industry. 

The station was a short-lived operation and abandoned due to the rapid decline in whale populations and when Wellers' went bankrupt. The whalers presence laid the groundwork for subsequent European settlement in the region. Today, sites like Caroline Bay, the preserved try pot stand, and famous When the Wellerman Come sea shanty, are reminders of Timaru's whaling heritage and its role in New Zealand's colonial history. 

The whaling industry played a vital role in shaping Timaru’s early economy and development. From the whaling ships that probably gave Caroline Bay its name, to the wreck of the Prince Consort, the history of the sea is still alive in the town. The playground near the whaling station and the ship barrel inside the ship structure are reminders of this fascinating past. By understanding these stories, students can better appreciate the local heritage and the ways in which history influences our surroundings.

The coastline looked very different then. It was mostly a stony shore that reached up to the clay cliffs. After the port was constructed, it interrupted the continuous stretch of coast. Today, when people think of Caroline Bay, they picture a much smaller area between Benvenue Cliffs and the port’s Marine Parade.

View north up the Timaru District coastline showing an interruption by the Timaru basalt formation. It forms the first hill south of the Canterbury Plains where Timaru's Hilton Highway ends (named after Timaru's first woman Mayor of Timaru City 1959-62). Photography courtesy of Geoff Cloake 2012. The sandy beach at Caroline Bay is an area of reclaimed land, shaped since the 1880s by currents and the city’s changing coastline.

Red Map. Plans of Native Reserves in Canterbury - Caroline Bay, Native Reserve 8 - 10 chains to 1 inch (1:7920), Item Code:R25179855 - https://ndhadeliver.natlib.govt.nz/IE40916334

The name "Caroline Bay" is believed to have originated from the whaling era of the 1839-1840s, though the exact source remains a subject of some debate... here are some options...

There was a queen, Queen Caroline of Brunswick, wife of George IV. Perhaps the ships and the bay were named after her.

Caroline von Brunswick was the unwanted wife of the Prince of Wales, later George IV. He considered her ungainly and unhygienic, and she found him equally unattractive. Their marriage was arranged for political and financial reasons and produced one child, Princess Charlotte Augusta, born in 1796. Soon after, they lived separately and both took lovers.

Caroline was prevented from seeing her daughter and was eventually banished to a private residence. She fled to Europe, where she lived a fast and costly life. When George became king in 1820, Parliament tried to dissolve the marriage, accusing her of an affair with her servant Bartolomeo Bergami. The case failed after a public outcry in her support.

Despite being mocked by the royal court, Caroline became hugely popular with the British public. Many saw her as a wronged woman and admired her courage in challenging her husband and returning to England to claim her rights as queen. George IV, by contrast, was seen as immoral, wasteful and disconnected from the people. Caroline’s dignity in the face of public scrutiny, and her exclusion from the coronation, drew widespread sympathy and solidarity.

Her adultery trial in the House of Lords became a media sensation. Crowds gathered daily, cheering her carriage, and pamphlets, broadsides and even commemorative items were sold in her honour. One London paper wrote, “She is the people’s queen, though the doors of power are shut against her.” Her popularity was rooted less in her personal conduct and more in what she came to represent—resistance to royal excess and injustice.

In 1821, she attempted to attend George IV’s coronation at Westminster Abbey but was turned away at the door. She died a few weeks later and was buried in Brunswick, where her coffin was inscribed with the words:
"Caroline the Injured Queen of England."

Queen Caroline; Princess Caroline Amelia Elizabeth, 1768 - 1821. Daughter of Charles, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel; Queen of George IV. 

Left Artists: Thomas Woolnoth (1785 - 1857) English After: Thomas Charles Wageman (1787 - 1863) English Title: Queen Caroline; Princess Caroline Amelia Elizabeth, 1768 - 1821. Daughter of Charles, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbuttel; Queen of George IV Date: Published 1820 Accession number: SP V 305.9  Gallery: Scottish National Portrait Gallery (Print Room)

Right: Artist: Samuel Lane (1780 - 1859) English. Queen Caroline; Princess Caroline Amelia Elizabeth, 1768 - 1821. Daughter of Charles, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel; Queen of George IV. Date: 1820. Accession number: PG 234
- National Galleries of Scotland collection. Photo, National Galleries of Scotland.

Association with the Whaling Ship Caroline

The most prominent theory is that the bay was named after a whaling ship called the Caroline. This vessel was known to visit the Timaru area regularly following the establishment of a whaling station by the Weller Brothers of Sydney in 1839. The Caroline would drop anchor offshore and was reported to have carried cargos of whale oil and whalebone, central products of the shore-based whaling trade. Evidence supporting this comes from early land transaction records. The name “Caroline Bay” is first recorded in documents from 4 December 1839, in the context of a sale of over a million acres of land from Māori to the Weller Brothers. Some sources claim the bay was named after the ship that collected the oil produced at the station. A book published by the descendants of whaler and one of Timaru's earliest residents Samuel William, writes that he came to New Zealand on the Caroline. Sam worked for the Wellers at a Timaru whaling station. Maybe he and his team, or boss named the area after their ride to the country?

Samuel Williams was a boat-steerer at the Timaru whaling station during the early 19th century, as recorded in the Harwood Journal. He was part of Thomas Brown's gang, which operated at the Timaru whaling station in the late 1830s and early 1840s. Williams was one of the 16 men listed in Thomas Brown's gang, which included other notable figures such as Peter Johnson, Charles Watkins, and William Mozzaroni. He was among the early European settlers in Timaru, arriving during the whaling period before the formal settlement of the area. Williams later became associated with the Timaru Hotel, indicating his transition from whaling to other occupations as the settlement grew. He was described as the oldest resident of Timaru at the time of his death, having lived through the early whaling days and the subsequent development of the town. Williams died on June 29, 1883, at the age of 64, and was commemorated with a bluestone monument erected by his fellow citizens. His connection to Timaru is significant as he was one of the few individuals who bridged the gap between the pre-settlement whaling era and the later agricultural and urban development of the town. Williams' presence in Timaru is documented in both the Harwood Journal and the Jubilee History of South Canterbury, highlighting his role in the early history of the region. His experiences as a whaler and later as a hotelier provide a glimpse into the transitional period of Timaru from a whaling station to a settled community. Williams' life and contributions are emblematic of the early European influence in Timaru, marking him as a key figure in the town's historical narrative. - Hall-Jones, Frederick George., Early Timaru: some historical records of the pre-settlement period, annotated and analysed.. Aoraki Heritage Collection, accessed 01/03/2025, https://aorakiheritage.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/161

There was more than one ship named Caroline at the time...

Historical accounts, including a report in the Timaru Herald (12 April 1934), highlight the possibility that the bay may have been named after another ship also named Caroline, known to frequent the New Zealand coast up until 1835. Maritime records indicate that several vessels named Caroline operated in the Pacific and Australasian waters during this era, which adds complexity to pinpointing which exact ship the bay was named after.

The whalers used to draw their water from Whales Creek, but because the tide used to flow into this creek, they would have'to go as far as Nelson Terrace to obtain fresh water from the creek. ... The Whaler Caroline “Supplies to this station were brought by the whaling ship Caroline, and so they bay came to be known as Caroline Bay. This ship had an eventful history. At one tlme it was commanded by Captain Blenkinsopp, who brought the Waiau plains from the Maoris for a cannon. The cannon is mounted on an obelisk in the sware at Blenheim. The Caroline was later bought by John Jones who started a whaling station in Waikouaiti in 1840. The ship was subsequently wrecked at the mouth of the New River, Southland. 
Because of bankruptcy, the whaling station was abandoned, and Dr Edward Shortland, the first man to record his journey on foot from Moeraki to Banks Peninsula in 1844, tells of the sorry sight this whaling station made. He wrote: ‘Many forlorn looking huts were still standing there; which, with casks, rusty iron hoops, and decaying ropes, lying about in all directions, told a tale of the waste and destruction that so often fall on a bankrupt’s property.‘
After the Timaru whaling station closed down," said Mr Vance. “the steersman, Sam Williams, went to work at the Rhodes' whaling station at Red House Bay. Banks Peninsula. Here Sam Williams told George Rhodes of the good sheep country lying to the south and the outcome of this was that the Rhodes Biothers took up all the land between the Pareora and Opihi Rivers and back to the Snowy Ranges. They also bought, the business area of Tirnaru. between North Street and Wai-iti Road and back to Grey Road—806 acres for £800.
Mr William Vance Traces History of Caroline Bay (12 Mar 1957). Aoraki Heritage Collection, accessed 07/06/2023, https://aorakiheritage.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/358 -  aorakiheritage.recollect.co.nz/358

Captain Blenkinsopp married a Maori woman, the. daughter of a local ; chieftain, and purchased from Te Rauparaha the whole of Wairau Plain. Te Rauparaha repudiated the bargain and the incident had a direct bearing on the Wairau massacre m 1843 which was the beginning of the wars between Maori and pakeha. - paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/Captain+Blenkinsopp

3. Historical Uncertainty

J.C. Andersen, in his Jubilee History of South Canterbury, underscores this uncertainty. He notes that although the whaling vessel Caroline was active around 1839, an earlier Caroline might have given the name to the bay as early as 1835 or earlier. Without definitive documentation tying a particular ship to the naming event, the precise origin remains unconfirmed. "Mr Jahannes C. Anderson, in his “Jubilee History of South Canterbury” says: ‘‘Joseph Price, chief officer of the Harriet, left the boat in December, 1839, and started whaling on his own account at Ikorai, Banks Peninsula. Price shipped in September, 1931, on board the Caroline for a whaling cruise; but whether Caroline Bay was named after this ship, or after another Caroline, a whaler that frequented the coast up till the year 1835, is not known.” Timaru Herald - 12 APRIL 1934, PAGE 6

Caroline Bay:

• The name Caroline Bay in Timaru is believed to have been derived from the whaling barque Caroline, which was owned by the Sydney firm R. Campbell and Company.
• The Caroline was one of the earliest whaling ships to operate in the region, engaging in bay whaling along the New Zealand coast.
• In the early 1830s, the Caroline was captained by Blenkinsopp, who was based at Port Underwood in Cloudy Bay, New Zealand.
• In 1834, Blenkinsopp used the Caroline to transport several escaped convicts from Sydney to his shore station in New Zealand.
• After Blenkinsopp, the Caroline was captained by Cherry, who was later killed by Maori near Mana Island.
• The ship was subsequently commanded by James Bruce.
• In 1837, the Caroline was purchased by John Jones, a prominent figure in the New Zealand whaling industry, who operated several shore stations from Waikouaiti to Preservation Inlet.
• The Caroline may have been the same 400-ton barque that was wrecked at New River Heads on April 1, 1860.
• This ship had been purchased by Jones, Cargill, and Company, who intended to convert it into a store ship at Invercargill.
• The name Caroline Bay in Timaru is a lasting reminder of the ship's influence on the region's whaling history.
• A try-pot from the whaling era, found near Patti Point, is now displayed at Caroline Bay, further connecting the area to its whaling past.

The Caroline was a significant whaling ship that operated in New Zealand waters during the 1830s, contributing to the early whaling industry in Timaru and other regions. Its legacy is preserved in the name Caroline Bay, and its history reflects the broader impact of whaling on New Zealand's coastal communities.

- Nomenclature section (pages 60-61) for the details about the whaling ship Caroline and its connection to Timaru.
Early Timaru: Some Historical Records of the Pre-Settlement Period, Annotated and Analysed"
By F.G. Hall-Jones
Published in 1956 by the Southland Historical Committee

Early Timaru Book by F. G.. Hall-Jones. Cover and inside page: North Street to Maori Reserve. After A. Wills, 1848 (re-worded). An old map gives Pohatukoko, the same name as the northernAn old map gives Pohatukoko, the same name as the northernreef at the harbour, at the head of the bay on the site ofthe old native huts shown on Wills's map.

"Caroline Bay: It is almost certain that Caroline Bay, the Caroline Har~bour of Golok's sale in 1839, took its name from the whalingbarque owned by the Sydney firm of R. Campbell and Company.She was probably the first at Timaru of the manywhaling ships which engaged in bay whaling round the NewZealand coast. Blenkinsopp, of Port Underwood, CloudyBay, was her captain in the early 'thirties, and in 1834 heshipped in her several escaped convicts at Sydney for his shorestation. Later captains were Cherry, who was killed by theMaoris near Mana Island, and James Bruce. The Carolineis mentioned more than once as cruising for sperm whales.In 1837 she was purchased by John Jones, who was then livingin Sydney and who had several shore stations from Waikouaitito Preservation Inlet. She was possibly the sameCaroline as the 400-ton barque wrecked at New River Headson April 1, 186o. This barque had been purchased by Jones,C~rgill and Company, who intended to convert her into a storeship at lnvercargill.The try-pot now at Caroline Bay was found, encrustedwi~h shells and barnacles, by Mr. A. Bennett in the shinglea little to the south of Patiti Point, where presumably a whalehad once been brought ashore. Mr. Bennett used it for manyyears as a watering trough in his yard at Patiti. It then wentto Sutherlands and was eventually secured by CouncillorMathers and placed at the bay.The Maori name is preserved in a jotting by Mantell in1848, "Te Kaio tauraka in Caroline Bay", (Kaio, probablythe ngaio tree; tauranga, an anchorage or a place of abode.)An old map gives Pohatukoko, the same name as the northernreef at the harbour, at the head of the bay on the site ofthe old native huts shown on Wills's map."

A black-and-white photograph of the Caroline, a steel 4-masted barque weighing 2,357 tons. Built in 1891 by Richardson, Duck and Co. of Stockton, the ship measures 300.5 feet in length, 42 feet in breadth, and 24.7 feet in depth. Originally registered in Windsor, Nova Scotia, Caroline was owned by FC Mahon before being sold in 1908 to Antoine Dom Bordes of Dunkirk and renamed. Known for its fast passages in its early career, the vessel tragically caught fire and was beached at Antofagasta in July 1920. This image is part of the A.D. Edwardes Collection, which includes photographs of sailing ships taken between 1865 and 1920. It was digitized on October 1, 2019, and is held by the State Library.  Part of the A.D. Edwardes Collection, specifically from a volume titled 'French Owned Shipping Lines'. No known copyright restrictions. Please refer to the State Library's Conditions of use for more details. collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/PRG+1373/48/17

Caroline Bay in 1890. Crowd on the beach at Caroline Bay, Timaru, circa 1890. Bathing machines are by the surf. Perhaps this is the stream at the left. Photograph taken by William Ferrier. - National Library. Tiaki Reference Number: PAColl-4746-02

Refernce to the "old native huts" at the foot of Wai-iti Rd intersection See map here 

It is interesting to see the changes to the coastline. This rapidly changed when the new harbour was built.

The earliest European reference to Tlmaru as such occurs in the whaling jour- nals of 1839 where it was described as “Ternurdu.” The first mention of “Caroline” occurs in mem- orials concerning the sale of land by the Maoris to the Weller Brothers in 1&39, when the Bay was ap- parently described as “Caroline Harbour." That the name "Timaru" was applied to the whole Bay is shown by an official notice in the Lyttelton Times of October 22. 1851, concerning “land which is to be laid off as a town at Timaru Bay."

One of the earliest references to the name "Caroline Bay" is on a 1868 chart of New Zealand by James Wyld Sr. (1790-1836) was a British cartographer and one of Europe's leading mapmakers. “Caroline Bay and Pateti Pt & Rf.” are shown just north and south of 'l‘imaru township.

"70 tun was ready to be collected at Timaru station". A tun of oil is by volume, 1 tun = 8 barrels. A wine tun is 252 gallons. Signwriting was incorporated to cargo of the shipwreck to intrigue visitors into learning more about the stories that inspired the playground. One barrel is a nod to the first known shipment of whale oil that was at Caroline Bay waiting to be collected. The other barrel is a nod to Timaru's first shipwreck the Prince Consort. William Williams, the first European born in Timaru, was the son of Samuel William, also known as "Yankie Sam," a whaler who had joined a whaling gang in the area in 1839. In 1886, Samuel Williams returned to Timaru to work for Rhodes, where he ran a small accommodation house and became the town's first publican. An interesting piece of local history is that his son's cradle was made from a gin crate. - Photo Roselyn Fauth