A Tale of Shipwreck, Fortitude and Endurance


Edward Kidson

In 1907 a New Zealand scientist, Edward Kidson, was a member of an expedition to the Auckland Islands. He kept a daily journal which was later edited and published by his widow in the 1940s. Here are some extracts:

"Port Ross, the Northern Harbour of the Auckland Islands was reached on November 16th, where the party bound for these islands was landed.

"On arriving at Port Ross the Hinemoa, to the amazement of those on board, was welcomed by a group of ship-wrecked mariners - survivors from the wreck of the SS Dundonald.

"The Dundonald was a steel four masted barque of 2,205 tons registered and owned by the Dundonald Shipping Co. of Glasgow. The ship left Sydney on February 17th, 1907 for Falmouth, England, and struck on a sunken reef on the west of Disappointment Island, a small island off the east coast of Auckland Island, on the night of March 6th in a violent storm. Captain Thorburn, his son and twelve of the crew were drowned. The remaining men, except three who had managed to get ashore, were saved by means of a rope thrown to one of the three, a Russian Finn, who had reached the nearest cliff.

"A seaman on the wreck made fast to the foremast a rope which he three to the Finn, who had been joined by the other two men ashore and they made the rope fast to the cliff and by this means all those on the wreck swung across the five yards of raging sea which separated them from the land. Two of the party who had got on to a ledge of rock, but could not move through overhanging rock, were also rescued by means of the rope, and the whole of the sixteen survivors were thus safely landed on Disappointment Island.

"When daylight came they started to make their way across to the North-east of the island, thinking they were on Auckland Island and would find a government depot there. Most of the men had very little clothing, and with no food they were in a pitiful plight. They managed to catch some mollywawks which nest on the island in large numbers, but there was no means of cooking them. They had to be skinned and eaten raw. Meantime the rain kept on, and when night fell they lay down in the mud with the rain beating on them. Hardly one but received some injury - a gash or stab from wreckage or rock. Some of them had been washed clear from the ship and back again, and all were exhausted. The first mate seemed almost like a dying man, he had been so battered and submerged....

"The following morning, climbing to the summit of a high hill, they found to their bitter disappointment that they were on a barren island, about three miles long and two miles wide, and separated from the West coast of Auckland Island by six miles of angry sea. This was well named Disappointment Island.

"They had among them three boxes of matches... containing about twelve good matches. With care they managed to start a fire, and seals were caught and killed.

"Returning to the wreck they could see that the fore-topgallant yard was now almost touching the cliff face. They managed to get on it and unbend the sail, finally getting two sails clear. Having secured lines to them, they hauled them to the top of the cliff. Here they built huts.... They ate chiefly albatrosses and mollymawks especially the young ones. Later when the young were all gone and the old birds shy, they took to seals. Only a few mutton birds were eaten. They killed everything with sticks; a seal was killed by accident by hitting it on the nose, and, afterwards this was always done, as hitting on the back was useless. They tied messages to albatrosses as a folorn hope. The idea came to them of making a boat in which to reach Auckland Island, and a search for wood suitable for a frame was started, and was eventually successful. The rough framework finished, it was covered with canvas, and the whole was completed in five days.

"Some of the canvas, by the way, had also been used for the making of trousers and the skins of seals were used to make boots and caps and coats, threads of sailcloth being used to sew with, the needles being made out of the bones of small birds.

"Finally, on the 28th July, the boat was launched and proved to be seaworthy.

"Paddles were made of forked sticks which were covered with canvas, and on the morning of 31st July, there being no wind, three men made the attempt to reach Auckland Island, and succeeded in doing so.

"These men had a terrible experience as they took no food with them, thinking there would be innumerable birds on the island, but there were none to be seen. After two days they met and killed a wild boar, which supplied them food while it lasted. Nearly starving again, after searching in vain for another six days for any sign for a depot, they determined to return to Disappointment Island, and on the 10th of August, the weather being fine, they reached their comrades safely.

"These latter, in the meantime, had made two more boats, each being big enough to hold four men instead of only each being big enough to hold four men instead of only three. The original canvas of the first boat was used again, but not the frame which was considered to have been strained. The boats were launched about September 20th and proved to be alright, but no day was fair enough to put to sea until nearly the end of September.

"Misfortune attended the first attempt, one of the boats being dashed to pieces on a rock by an extra big wave as the last two of the four men were boarding her.

"The men saved themselves, but the boat was a wreck. Nothing daunted, four men again determined to make the attempt in the other large boat, and on October 7th they did so, and after a gruelling experience, they reached the mainland. As the boat was close in shore a big roller overtook it, dashing it on the rocks. The men managed to jump to safety, but the boat filled and sank. One of the men who had hung on to the painter, managed to get the boat up again, however, and she was beached.

"An added tragedy was that a sod with fire which had been carried in the boat, in order to start a fire on shore after landing, was lost when the boat capsized and they had only two matches left.

"When the little tin box in which were the matches was opened, however, the head of one was found to be half off, and the last appeared sodden and useless, and a little flame glimmered when it was struck, it immediately faded out. The attempt to use the matches was not made until the men had been there for two days and had tried to dry them by putting them where the rays of the sun would reach them. A seal was caught and killed, and eaten raw as there was now no hope of a fire.

"They attempted to cross the island in search of a depot through almost impenetrable bush, which alternated with thick swamps in which they sank to their knees in slimy mud. They were bruised and bleeding. Finally they came upon a sign post indicating that they were four miles from Provision Dept then another at two miles and finally by moonlight they arrived at that haven of refuge at Port Ross.

"Here they found a notice left by the New Zealand Government steamer Tutanekai on February 1st, 1907, giving the approximate time of the next visit by a Government steamer.

"A boat was found at the depot and they managed to rig a sail for her, for though it had only been six miles to cross in the canvas canoe, they were now on the opposite side of the Auckland Island and it meant that they would have to two journeys were made, one party being landed at the valley where the first four men had landed, and then walking across the island, following the route round to Ross Harbour. All were safely landed.

"The first mate (ie. Jabez Peters), an elderly man had died on the 12th day after the wreck. He had been badly affected by sleeping in wet clothing that he became paralyzed from the waist down. He was buried in the sand on Disappointment Island.

"Thereafter they lived in comparative comfort, "living like gentlemen, hunting and shooting big game." An old blunderbuss was found at the depot and with this they hunted cattle on Enderby Island.

"The captain of the Hinemoa, being bound to continue his trip around the islands, told the castaways he would pick them up on his return, meanwhile providing them with a fortnight's provisions.

"Charles Eyre, one of the seamen, was asked if he would go as cook to the party for Campbell Island, which he agreed to do, and it was through him that Kidson heard so many details of the experiences of the seamen as castaways.

(Note: Mrs Kidson put this tactic of the Hinemoa's master rather nicely... what he really wanted to do was check that the shipwreck story was true and that the men weren't really mutineers who had done away with the Dundonald's master and loyal crew or been deliberately castaway by the Dundonald's master as a penalty for some disciplinary infraction by taking away the crew member he felt was most likely to crack under the pressure of being made to retell his story repeatedly and be cross questioned by his officers. This is "given away" by Kidson himself who notes that when they returned to to Port Ross on 27th November 1907, that they had "...seen (the) shipwrecked crew (of the Dundonald) and had Charlie's tale confirmed.")

Some more on The Aucklands from Edward Kidson's Notebook as quoted by Mrs Kidson

26/11/07 - "Headwind and sea on the road to Aucklands, and most of us felt worse we had ever been on the trip. We went into Carnley Harbour (in the south of the island) and sounded the syren (sic). Captain went ashore and the Auckland Islands party decided to come off rather than be picked up two days later. We then went on to the end of Carnley Harbour; fine entrance with cliffs. Saw a number of sea lions about. Boat visited boatshed on Adams Island. Then put a boat ashore... and went onto Epigwaitt where the Grafton was wrecked and took photos of the remains of the wreck and the hut. Went back and shipped the Auckland party all well and happy with good results to report. Left for Norman's Inlet where are putting in for the night. Norman's Inlet has head much nearer West coast than is shown on the map.

27/11/07 - "Went ashore at 4 am and got to work straight away at magnetic station. The cliffs overlooking the inlet (which is entirely shut in) are practically on the Western Coast. They show traces of glaciation.... The geologists had a good time. Seals were about in the inlet. The most southern tree fern in the world was found. Finished and went aboard.... went back and turned into the south arm where a fine specimen of a hanging valley was found.... Then went North to Ross harbour. Went ashore on Enderby Island (north of Ross Harbour) from two to six and put in a magnetic station. No sun however. Sea lions were very thick and some hunting was done, four being killed for museums. In Erebus Cove off the depôt now....

28/11/07 - "Left Ross Harbour for Disappointment Island. To land on the island we had to get in a whale boat, rising and falling on NE swell. We landed on the place from where the castaways left in their canvas boats. The framework of one boat was there and the remains of another. They were photographed and taken aboard. Hundreds of mollymawks on large, high, smooth and well rounded nests, evidently carefully built. Very long tussock and Pleurophyllum of very great size with beautiful flowers. Little short scrub (Suttonea).

"In the valley over the top of the cliffs were the sod huts of the castaways to which Kidson paid a visit with Charles Eyres and of which he gives the following notes.

"There were 18 erections of different kinds - one meat safe and several cook houses; old seal skin mocassins, seal skins, canvas articles etc. were plentful. There were also pieces of cork from the life belts. The huts were like eskimo huts; the experience of the Russian Finn (one of the seamen) was invaluable to the castaways; he had hunted reindeer; made mocassins etc. The doors to the huts were low and had to be crawled into. The hut was largely underground; a framework was made of Veronica sticks on which the sods were placed with roots inward, making a cosy, waterproof and warm shelter. Most of the things in the huts were mildewed. In numbers, blankets were made from dried mollymawk skins. There were bone needles in some. For building, rope yarn, canvas thread, and wire were largely used. The approaches to the doors of the huts had walls on each side for some distance. There were large piles of firewood near some of the huts. In the meat house were numerous hooks made of bent sticks; on one was a piece of seal's blubber. Cook houses were deep, with shelves at the sides let into the walls, chimneys at ends. In one was a piece of rope made of plaited grass. The Finn's hut was very long and had a cookhouse at the entrance. The sleeping room was very long and low, and went off from the side of the entrance hall and cookhouse. This was the warmest house, but caught fire twice, once when Charlie was in when the canvas boat was being built. The space in front was littered with mollymawk and seal remains; hence it was unsavoury. All the firewood had to be brought from one steep gully, a good half hour from the camp. While we were taking photographs of the huts etc., the two mates, the Finn and another fellow, had gone for the mate's body which was low down on the other side of the island.

"On a ridge above the camp were several young wandering albatrosses, one of which was hatched whilst the castaways were thereand was to some extent a pet. It was raining all the time and with tussock and ligusticum up to the waist, we got pretty well soaked as well as covered with peat right up to the knees. Near the landing was a female hair seal which did not shift....

"We steamed right round the island and saw the place where the Dundonald went ashore. The whole face of the large hill behind it was dotted with thousands of mollymawks looking like daisies.

Edward Kidson (1882 - 1939) was an eminent New Zealand scientist, latterly Director of Meteorological Services in New Zealand.. His widow Isabel M. Kidson ( - 1959), edited his travel journals and subsequently a book "Edward Kidson" was published in 1941 by Whitcombe & Tombs Limited.

A bibliography of Kidson's published papers can be found at Bright Sparks: Physics in Australia to 1945

All of the above quoted material except for the colour images is doubtless the copyright of Mrs Kidson's estate and if I have infringed on that in an unacceptable way, I shall take the material down on being notified of my error. However, the material is intended as a memorial to the brave men of the Dundonald and also to Edward Kidson and the regard he was held in by his wife. A more tangible memorial was created by Mrs Kidson herself by a bequest in her will, "The Edward and Isabel Kidson Scholarships" , which are awarded annually to graduates from New Zealand universities.

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This page last updated: 6th March 2001