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The 14 Trans-Tasman Voyages of the brig Deborah under the Command of Captain Jeremiah Nagle. (6th June 1847- 12th September 1848)
Nagle was employed to command the Deborah brig as a regular trader between Auckland and Sydney, New South Wales, calling when necessary at other places such as Great Barrier Island and along the east coast north of Auckland. On it, he did fourteen Tasman crossings between 6th June, 1847, when he first took command in Sydney, and 12th September, 1848 when he left the vessel, again in Sydney, - a period of a little over 15 months, ending eleven years to the day since the Deborah had been launched at Miramachi in eastern Canada, "at Raymond & Gregan's Shipyard by Mr Washington Raymond's little girl Deborah. The shipyard was at Kouchibouguac near the mouth of the river of the same name which flows into Northumberland Strait in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.... It was first registered at Miramachi 25/1839" (p80 'Wing of the Manukau'). The vessel's first master was Joseph Cunard, whose brother Samuel Cunard of Halifax, built up the famous Cunard Line. Joseph Cunard
Auckland to Sydney by sea is approximately 1200 nautical miles. In the months before Nagle took command, the vessel had called into Nagle’s Cove from which he and his wife, his sister Alinia and brother-in-law Captain William Twohey had all gone, presumably children included, for a sail to the Bay of Islands and back with the majority-owner Captain Andrew Bliss, and his wife Louisa. Shortly after Andrew Bliss died suddenly in October, 1849, after returning from San Francisco in the Deborah, Nagle temporarily took command of it once more for about a month while it lay at the Circular Quay in Sydney. When another master, McCattie, was found, Nagle departed for California himself on the Gloucester, but by force of circumstance ended up on that ship calling into Auckland before carrying on to California.
When Nagle first took command of the Deborah, the vessel was already well-known around the New Zealand and Australian coasts since Captain Thomas Wing had first arrived with her to the Bay of Islands from London in 1840[i].
Dep Ak 6/5/47 Auk = Auckland Arr BoI ?/5/47 BoI= Bay of Islands Dep BoI 11/5/47 Syd= Sydney, NSW. Arr Syd 30/5/47
1 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 1 Dep Syd 26/6/47 Arr Auk 7/7/47
2 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 2 Dep Auk 17/7/47 Arr Mah Dep Mah Mah = Mahurangi River (source of timber/spars/rickers etc) Arr Nag 24/7/47 Nag=Nagles Cove Dep Nag 26/7/47 Arr Syd 18/8/47
3 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 3 Dep Syd 8/9/47 Arr Nag 23/9/47 Dep Nag 26/9/47 Arr Auk 27/9/47
4 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 4 Dep Auk 10/10/47* Arr Nag 10/10/47 Dep Nag 10/10/47 Arr BoI ?/10/47 must have been there 10th to report dep of a schooner Dep BoI 16/10/47 Arr Syd 29/10/47
5 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 5 Dep Syd 17/11/47 Arr Auk 30/11/47
6 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 6 Dep Auk 8/12/47 Arr Nag 9/12/47 Dep Nag 9/12/47 nag = Nagles Cove, Great Barrier Island Arr Syd 21/12/47
7 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 7 Dep Syd 18/01/48 Arr Auk 4/02/48
8 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 8 Dep Auk 14/2/48 Arr Kaw 15/2/48 Kaw = Kawau Island near Auckland Dep Kaw 15/2/48 Arr BoI 18/2/48 Dep BoI 21/2/48 . Arr Syd 5/3/48
9 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 9 Dep Syd 18/3/48 Arr Auk 29/3/48
10 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 10 Dep Auk 6/4/48 Arr Nag 7/4/48 Dep Nag 14/4/48 Arr Syd 5/5/48
11 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 11 Dep Syd 18/5/48 Arr Nag 27/5/48 Dep Nag 28/5/48 Arr Auk 30/5/48
12 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 12 Dep Auk 15/6/48 Arr Syd 4/7/48
13 For more information on this voyage click Deborah voyage 13 Dep Syd 24/7/48 Arr Auk 5/8/48
14 For more information on this voyage click Deborah Voyage 14 Dep Auk 17/8/48 Arr Nag 19/8/48 Dep Nag 20/8/48 Arr Syd 12/9/48
Dep Syd 25/9/48 Bliss master, Nagle stayed behind Arr Nag check Dep Nag check Arr Ak 8/10/48
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 Deborah Painting by W. Russell,
(original in Otago Settlers Museum)
Deborah anchored in Nagle Cove, Great Barrier Island, November, 1847.
Original sketch is in William Bambridge Journal p188 Alexander Turnbull Library.
 Photo taken in November 2005, just 158 years later. Copyright Don Armitage.
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TransTasman voyages of the Deborah 1847-8 |