Friday, February 23, 2024

Tiger Tea - a lower South Island Icon

Tiger Tea poster from 1905 by commercial artist Peter McIntyre. Image courtesy of Te Ara The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. A link to the Te Ara can be found here

On my travels across this beautiful region I saw a number of interesting murals and advertisements for Tiger Tea. After taking some photos and doing some online research, I found a local topic that begged to be covered. So while this blog normally covers railways and infrastructure, here is a post on Tiger Tea and its remaining presence across Otago.

The lower South Island of New Zealand is known for its local delicacies - cheese rolls, Speights, blue cod and Bluff oysters to name a few. Another well known local product was Tiger Tea.

Tiger Tea advertisement from the Otago Daily Times and Witness in 1902. Image courtesy of the National Library of New Zealand. A link to the National Library can be found here

At the beginning of the 20th century, Dunedin was home to a number of different tea brands. One of these was Tiger Tea, which was first produced by J. Rattray and Son's Ltd. in 1890.

Tea was a big deal in Aotearoa New Zealand and was consumed in large quantities. In 1910, New Zealanders were consuming an average of 3.4 kilograms of tea per person per year. By the 1980's the consumption of tea and coffee had evened out at 2 kilograms per person per year. Coffee soon surpassed tea, partly due to the growth of New Zealand's café culture.

J. Rattray and Son Ltd. were proactive in promoting their tea across the lower South Island. Newspaper advertisements, posters, packaging and hand painted murals on dairies and grocery stores were all used to advertise Tiger Tea. 

A five pound metal tin that contained Tiger Tea. Image courtesy of Digital NZ and Te Hikoi Museum Riverton. A link to Digital NZ can be found here.

In 1969, the Bell Tea Company purchased the Tiger Tea brand and began producing it at the their Hope Street factory in Dunedin. 

The former Bell Tea Factory on the corner of Hope and Carroll Streets, Dunedin. 22/07/2023.

The former Bell Tea Factory on the corner of Hope and Carroll Streets, Dunedin. 22/07/2023.

In 2014, operations at the Hope Street factory ended. Tiger Tea remained available in the South Island but at a time of global business consolidation, the benefits of having a regional tea brand were not commercially viable and Tiger Tea quietly disappeared from the shelves of South Island grocery stores.

While no longer available, Tiger tea has left an imprint on the lower South Island with many nods to its existence remaining across Otago.

Vogel Street is a Dunedin treasure with a number of repurposed and redeveloped commercial buildings that include businesses, apartments and cafes. One of these redeveloped buildings is the J. Rattray and Son Ltd building at 8 Vogel Street. This building was home to the Tiger Tea Section of the Rattray business. Now used as a apartments the building still holds onto its heritage with the name of the former owner outlined at the top of the building. 

The J.Rattray and Son Ltd Building on Vogel Street, Dunedin. 22/07/2023.

Dunedin has an amazing street art trail with over 30 murals across the central city. The mural on the side of the building is called 'Annabel'. This was the first piece of major street art completed on the trail and was painted by local artist Jon Thom.

The front of the J.Rattray and Son Ltd Building on Vogel Street, Dunedin. 22/07/2023.

J.Rattray and Son actively promoted their Tiger Tea brand across the lower South Island. Most grocery stores and diaries had some form of Tiger Tea advertising including painted murals and signs. A few of these murals and signs still exist.

One of the most well known is the Tiger tea mural in Caversham. While the building is no longer a grocery store, the mural has been retained as part of the area's local history.

The Tiger tea mural on South Road, Caversham. 22/07/2023.

Alongside Otago Harbour at Ravensbourne is another example of Tiger Tea advertising. As part of its redevelopment into apartments, the old Ravensbourne Store received a facelift that included the restoration of the old advertising murals on the north side of the building. Tiger tea, Lanes soft drinks and Wards Ice Cream were all popular local products in their day. 

Tiger tea, Lanes soft drinks and Wards Ice Cream advertising on the old Ravensbourne Store. 10/02/2024.

A photo of the Ravensbourne Store taken sometime in the 1970's. Image courtesy of the Dunedin City Council Facebook page.

Another Tiger tea mural can also be found on the southern side of the building.

Tiger tea mural on the Ravensbourne Store, Ravensbourne. 22/07/2023.

Tiger Tea advertising has influenced local artists with many artworks including this print by Hamish Allan inspired by the former Suttons grocery store in Port Chalmers.

Tiger Tea Shop by Hamish Allan.

The original Suttons grocery store in Port Chalmers. 22/07/2023.

Tiger Tea advertising wasn't limited to Dunedin either. At the old grocery store in Hampden, a  mural remains on the building.

Tiger Tea mural on the old Hampden Store. 05/07/2023.

More Tiger Tea advertising can be found on the old store in the small North Otago settlement of Tokarahi. The store has been rebuilt as a home but the new residents have kept the sign as a nod to the buildings history.

The Tiger Tea sign at the old Tokarahi Store. 04/07/2023.

A close up of the sign.

Old stores like those at Hampden and Tokarahi played an important part in small rural communities but as roads and vehicles improved, people travelled to the larger towns for their shopping and these old country stores slowly disappeared.


Tokarahi Store and Post Office in 1939. Image courtesy of Culture Waitaki. A link to their excellent collection can be found here

One of the most well known remaining examples of Tiger Tea advertising is Dunedin City Council Transport Trolley Bus Number 10.


DCCT Trolley Bus Number 10 in its striking Tiger Tea livery at St Kilda. Photo by Mark Jarka. 

In 1956, Dunedin's electric trams were phased out and replaced by trolley buses. The trolley buses were electrically powered using overhead wires. By the early 1960's Dunedin City Council Transport operated a fleet of 79 trolley buses across its extensive network of 14 bus routes. Starting in 1969, the trolley bus network was progressively closed in favour of diesel buses.

Trolley Bus No.10 was built in 1950 using a chassis made by Leyland in the UK with a body built by New Zealand Motor Bodies of Christchurch. Entering service in 1951, No.10 served Dunedin with distinction. 

In 1976 Trolley Bus No.10 became a local celebrity when it was painted in the tiger striped Tiger Tea livery. 

While the trolley buses had a reprieve with the oil crises of the 1970's, the writing was on the wall. No.10 was one of the last trolley buses operating in Dunedin when the final trolley bus routes were closed.

This wasn't the end for No.10. Due to its celebrity status No.10 was preserved and is now on display at Dunedin's Toitu Otago Settlers Museum.

Tiger Tea livered trolley bus No.10 at Toitu Otago Settlers Museum. 

While I will always have a love for railways, I really enjoyed this side track into another part of Otago's history. I'm sure there will be more non-railway posts coming to this blog in the future.

And that's about it.

Tuesday, December 12, 2023

Wickliffe Street Siding - Return of a ghost railway

Whites Aviation Photo of the Dunedin tank farms along Wickliffe and Fryatt Street taken on the 31st of March 1955. Photo courtesy of the National Library. A link to the photo can be found here.

New Zealand Railways once had an extensive network of sidings that transported goods to and from the industrial area in Dunedin's harbour basin.

The sidings along Wickliffe and Fryatt Streets served the Shell depot on Wickliffe Street, and the container yard, Caltex depot, bituman siding, wharf, cool store and New Zealand Cement Holdings on Fryatt Street.

Over time the private siding traffic dried up until only the container yard was still served by shunts. This traffic came to an end in the late 2000's.

DSC 2462 shunts the container yard on Fryatt Street. 7 September 2008. Photo by Geoffery White. A link to Geoffery's Flickr page can be found here.

The siding was later disconnected from the rest of the network near the ANZAC Avenue over bridge and was left to slowly rust away.

In mid November, I heard talk of the Wickliffe siding being rebuilt and track being relaid. Being curious, I decided to pay the old siding a visit.

Map of the Wickliff Street Siding.

Speculation is rife amongst the railfan community about what is happening with the siding. Some say it will be used for log trains running from a new inland log port on the Taieri, while others say it is getting rebuilt with government funding because a new section of the Aka Otakou - The Otago Vine cycle and walking trail that links Port Chalmers with Portobello around Otago Harbour crosses the old siding. Either way it is good to see some siding track being relaid.

On my visit work was definitely underway on the relaying and refurbishment of the siding.

Repurposed track relaid alongside the Main South Line. Dunedin Railway Station can be seen in the distance. 18/11/2023.

The siding track running alongside the old NZR permanent way workshop. 18/11/2023.
 
The siding track diverging from the Main South Line to run along Wickcliff Street. 18/11/2023.

The location of the new crossing with the Te Aka Otakou - The Otago Vine cycle and walking trail. The popular Emersons Brewery can be seen in the upper left of the photo. 18/11/2023.

The Wickliffe Street Siding crosses the entrance to the Z Energy Fuel Terminal. 18/11/2023.

Looking east along the siding and the points at the western end of the short loop. 18/11/2023.

Looking west along the siding and the points at the eastern end of the short loop. 18/11/2023.

The location of the current crossing with the Te Aka Otakou - The Otago Vine cycle and walking trail. A new section of the trail is being built alongside the far end of the fuel terminal and the Main South Line. 18/11/2023.

Looking east from the Te Aka Otakou Trail crossing, the siding turns to the left as it begins to run parallel with Fryatt Street. 18/11/2023.

As the siding curves to the left it crosses the entrance and exit to a waste transfer station. The track to the right was the beginning of the siding that followed Fryatt Street to the south. 18/11/2023.

The remains of the former siding along Fryatt Street. 18/11/2023.

The former end of the Wickliffe Siding along Fryatt Street. 18/11/2023.

And the possible end of the new siding beside the Fryatt Street Log Terminal. 18/11/23.

With my photos taken, I left Wickliff Street behind hoping that trains will shortly return to the siding.

And that's about it. 

Thursday, August 24, 2023

Living on Borrowed Time - Bridge 194

 
Train 962 Dunedin to Middleton Freight crosses bridge 194 over the Pleasant River at Goodwood on the 15th of January 2023. Photo by Darryl Bond and used with permission. You can find Darryl's fantastic Flickr page here

Over my last few trips to Dunedin I spotted some activity around the old wooden bridge at Goodwood. My interest was further raised last week when I saw a large crane on the north side of the Pleasant River. While I couldn't stop to have a look at the time, I managed to get away from the house for short time to explore and see what was happening.

Arriving at Goodwood I turned off State Highway 1 onto Goodwood Road and then on Brooklands Road. It wasn't long until the bridge and the construction site came into view.

Bridge 194 and the construction site. 12/08/2023

Bridge 194 is a traditional New Zealand railways beam bridge made up of three and five pile piers and 12 spans of steel and wooden beams. The bridge carries the Main South Line over the Pleasant River at Goodwood. 

Goodwood is located about halfway between the Otago towns of Waikouaiti and Palmerston and has the claim to fame as the location where the railway line between Christchurch and Dunedin finally met in 1878.

An overhead view of bridge 194.

While the Pleasant River was nice and calm today, the river rapidly rises and floods if the area has any significant rain. Having a closer look at the bridge, you can see that it's taken a beating over it's many decades of service and is due for replacement.

Bridge 194 crossing Pleasant River at Goodwood. 12/08/2023

With easy access and the thought that this bridge and many like it are quickly disappearing, I decided to get some detail shots of the structure.

The Ontrack bridge information sign on pier 9. 12/08/2023.

The piers at the north end of Bridge 194 including the previously replaced pile and pier cap on the nearest pier, pier 7. 12/08/2023.

Another view of pier 7 with its replacement pile and pier cap. 12/08/2023.

Pier 9 with its steel rings around the center pile. 12/08/2023.

A closeup of piles on pier 9 with the different stamped numbers and markings. 12/08/2023.

The battered and repaired pier 10 on Bridge 194. 12/08/2023.

Brooklands Road passing under the southern end of Bridge 194 looking towards the west. 12/08/2023.

    A detail shot of eastern sides of pier 11 and the southern abutment. 12/08/2023.

A detail shot of the western sides of pier 11 and the southern abutment. 12/08/2023.

Detail shot of the pier cap, bearers, timber beams and sleepers on pier 11. 12/08/23.

Ontracks bridge identification sign and the old 194 bridge number plate on the south abutment. 12/08/2023.

To help get construction material to Goodwood, KiwiRail ran a special train made up log wagons carrying pile casings to the HEB Construction site.

DC 4323 arrives at Goodwood with a special train carrying pile casings. Photo courtesy of the KiwiRail Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/KiwiRailNewZealand  

The first of the pile casings is prepared to be lifted from the special train. Photo courtesy of  the KiwiRail Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/KiwiRailNewZealand 

Pile casings for the new bridge at Goodwood being unloaded. Photo courtesy of the KiwiRail Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/KiwiRailNewZealand

While it's sad to see traditional NZR infrastructure like this bridge disappearing, it is good to see money being invested to improve and upgrade Aotearoa's rail network.

Since I pass this site a lot, I'll make sure to keep you up to date with the challenging work of building a new railway bridge while keeping the line open for traffic. 

And that's about it.