Description

Waipapa Point marks the scene of New Zealand's worst civilian shipwreck. On 29 April 1881, 131 people were drowned when the passenger steamer Tararua was wrecked on a reef off the point. After the shipwreck a Court of Inquiry, investigating the loss of the Tararua, recommended a light be erected on the point. A wooden tower and houses for three keepers and their families were constructed. The light was lit for the first time on New Year's Day in 1884. The lighthouse is all that remains of the original light station. The keepers' houses and associated buildings have been removed. There is no public access to enter the lighthouse.