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The “Inconstant.”
Towards the end of 1849 the ship “Inconstant,” 588 tons, of London, missed stays in entering the harbour and drifted on to the rocks at the point near Pencarrow named after her. Fortunately, H.M. Surveying Steamer “Acheron” was in port at the time and towed her off. Apparently the damage was too extensive for repairs to be effected, for Messrs. Bethune and Hunter sold the vessel to a local shipwright, who in turn sold it to Mr. John Plimmer in 1850 for £80. Mr. Plimmer received permission from Sir George Grey to remove the vessel from Te Aro, where she was beached, to a short distance north of Clay Point, in front of Barrett's Hotel, by that time removed to its present site. He cut down the upper works, shored up the hull, connected it with Lambton Quay by means of a bridge, and constructed over part of it a large building, 68 ft. by 30 ft., comprising two floors, while the lower part of the ship formed a basement measuring 80 ft. by 25 ft. The building was fitted as a warehouse and auction-room for Messrs. James Smith and Co., who opened it for business on the 14th May, 1851. As usual in those days, the occasion was celebrated by a lunch. The building was generally known as “Noah's Ark,” although it was often
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called “Plimmer's Wharf.” There was an open platform at each end of the hull. The fore part of the vessel is said to have rested in 10 ft. of water, the platform being used as a wharf. The earthquake of 1855 caused some damage by throwing the vessel on its side, but with difficulty it was replaced firmly and safely in its old position. After the shake Mr. Plimmer built a retaining-wall to the north of the “Ark” and filled in around it. Mr. C. R. Carter, in reporting on Mr. Plimmer's claim in 1862 for the pre-emptive right to purchase the adjacent land, stated that Mr. Plimmer had constructed a timber breastwork 136 ft. long, valued at £95, and had filled in 3,601 cubic feet of spoil, valued at £450. The Provincial Council allowed Mr. Plimmer's claim to two sections. These sections together comprised an irregularly-shaped block with a frontage of 50 ft. to Hunter Street, 130 ft. to Customhouse Quay, and 130 ft. to Lambton Quay. The price of the Hunter Street corner section was to be fixed by the price obtained for the section opposite—that is, the present Australian Mutual Provident Society's site. The second section, with 70 ft. frontage to Customhouse Quay and 130 ft. to Lambton Quay, was to be sold on the Customhouse Quay frontage at a price per foot averaging the price received from the sections on the opposite side. This land brought £15 per foot. He was also to be allowed the amount stated above for the work done by him. After the 1861 reclamation was completed Mr. Plimmer constructed another wharf from the breastwork. This wharf was generally known as Plimmer and Reeves's Wharf. It was the last private wharf in Wellington Harbour to go, which it did when the Te Aro reclamation was undertaken.