Lounge on the Captain Cook immigrant ship

My grandfather travelled on the Captain Cook leaving from Glasgow on the 22nd September 1953. His name was John Robson Scott and was part of the NZDAF - New Zealand Air Force. I am desperately trying to chase down a photo of him as my mother has never seen a picture of her Dad. If anyone was on that journey and can provide names or avenus for me to research I would be truly grateful.

Found Bob Cotti's comment, was also a young child with my mother, sister and brother on this exact voyage (my Dad had to stay back for 3 months to help the locals learn the ropes of the sugar factory in Babakan.) We were accommodated in Bosenven waiting for him. We migrated a year later to N.Z where we lived for 11 years and then eventually migrated and finally settled in Perth Western Australia.

I have been looking through the posts on this page. And noted a post from ( Sandra Omson ) about her trip to NZ with her family. She mentioned at the bottom of her post . Did anyone remember the Bishop Family . My name is Ian Bishop and came out to NZ on that sailing. Arriving in December 1956 Would like to get in touch. If possible . My email is iandbishop@outlook .com

My Father (Eamon 'Edward' Patrick Kerr), sailed aboard the TSS Captain Cook from Glasgow in February 1958, arriving in Wellington on Good Friday 5 April 1958. I'm looking to make contact with anyone with information of this voyage (Sandra Lowe, Ray Foster, Carol Moore or Vicki Dakers ... ), as he is returning to New Zealand for the first time in nearly 60 years and I'm hoping to present him with as much information as possible about his journey and life here in New Zealand.

He came to join the RNZAF, met my mother at Te Rapa (Hamilton) the following year, married and had 6 children, of which I'm the only one living here in New Zealand. The rest are in the UK.

My mother (Margaret Jean Robbins), was on the very next voyage, leaving Glasgow on 17 June 1958, arriving in Wellington on 24 July 1958. She too was headed to the RNZAF and was destined to be the bride of my father ... but neither of them knew this at the time.

As an aside, I'm also trying to find details and team photographs of anyone during my father's time playing football (soccer) for Taieri, Te Papa, the RNZAF and Combined Services between 1959 and 1963.

Any help would be gratefully appreciated. Paul Kerr - [email protected]

I was 2 ½ when I travelled on the Captain Cook with my parents Harold and Frances (originally from Manchester) in 1959. I’ve got a copy of the Farewell Dinner menu on 24 June with some autographs – it lists the dates as departing Glasgow on 20 May and arriving Wellington 25 June. Presumably it went via Curacao and the Panama Canal but I have no memories of the trip or its route. I’ve recently looked at copies of Wellington newspapers, the Dominion and the Evening Post in the National Library and both have articles on the arrival. There’s a great photo in the Dominion of the ships arrival on ‘a midwinter day of glorious sunshine and not a breath of wind’. It arrived at 10pm on the 25th and anchored in the harbour overnight, berthing the next morning at Kings Wharf with 1,036 passengers including 150 children under 12, like me, according to the Evening Post. The Evening Post has two stories – one with a photo of ‘Miss Captain Cook’, 19 year old Katherine Dale, bound for Christchurch from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne ‘who won the title from 24 other entrants’. Apparently she ‘is keen to do modelling work in this country. She is interested in fashions, dancing – and also in getting married’. She was accompanied by her fiancé, a Mr T. Wilkinson. The second story has a photo of the five Bailey sisters, aged from 3 to 10, from Norwich and off to Auckland. He’s keen to ‘do broadcasting work in this country and is planning a brochure on the Captain Cook’s voyage’ – wonder if that ever eventuated? Last word to the Dominion that quoted two young immigrants ‘well, it’s good to be off that thing’.

I was six when we arrived in NZ in March 1955. We kids had separate meal times to the grown ups and because I was older had to look after my brother. We pretty well had run of the ship and could go just about anywhere on deck. I remember the particlar smell coming out of the air intakes that seemed to be all over the deck. My Dad's cousin met us in Wellington and that night we sailed on tha Maori for Llytelton. Then travelling by train and bus we arrived at Roxburgh Hydro. In 1957 we went to Wairakei and then in 1960 moved to Taupo. My mother and father were Norma and Fred Williams and they lived in Taupo until their deaths. It's been interesting reading what others have written and there are one or two names I recognise.

I had my 6th birthday on August 7, 1955 on the TSS Captain Cook. Dad, mother and sister we were heading for the USA. Dad was a civil engineer, he died in 1975 I was home on leave from the Army. Mother is now 95 and in poor health, sister is married and her son is a civil engineer. I was a Funeral Director and now Iam retired and living in Florida with my wife.

We arrived in Wellington about May 31- June 1954 on my 7th birthday. John and Evelyn Smith from Falkirk Scotland, with twin sons Jimmy and Johnny (me). Dad worked for the Wellington Gas works for years before he moved the family to Chch where it was easier for him to buy his first home. Each visit of the Captain Cook to Wngtn Dad would have a party for some of the cabin crew and mess stewards. Even after the TSS C,C, stopped sailing, many of the crew signed on to the Southern Cross so we still had our party's. From the memory of a 6 1/2 yr old it was a fairly rough crossing in places, weather wise with big seas. What a great adventure for two young boys, and what a great country to come to.

I came to New Zealand in 1957, aged 2 and a half. I had the measles and was in isolation. My family, Andrew and Sadie Redmond and my sisters Irene and Ann came to Christchurch where my dad had a job waiting at the Christchurch Transport Board as a bus driver. We came from Northern Ireland.

I along with my parents Roy and Doris Cox arrived in New Zealand June 1959 .
Bob Lindsay posted on this site we were on the Same voyage.