the H.M.S. NYMPHE in New Zealand - 1876 :: FamilyTreeCircles.com Genealogy
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the H.M.S. NYMPHE in New Zealand - 1876

Journal by ngairedith

Description of the NYMPE
as reported in the EVENING POST Evening Post, 30 MAY 1876

H.M.S.NYMPHE
.. As H.M.S corvette Nymphe will be stationed at Wellington during the sitting of Parliament, the following from the Dunedin Guardian may interest our readers:- The Nymphe is an ordinary wooden ship with iron beams, and was built at Woolwich in 1866, her measurment tonnage being 1084. She is rigged as a barque, and is a well-modelled vessel of her class, armed at the bow with a steel ram fitted to a watertight compartment. Her steam power consists of two three-cylinder engines by Maudesly, nominally of 300 horse power, and capable of being worked up to 2872 horse power.

She is armed with nine sixty-four hundred-weight guns, four of a side, and a bow gun, and from her appearance would evidently prove a ost formidable antagonist should circumstances cause her to engage in strife.

The Nymphe has been in commission about fifteen months, and during that time has been employed cruising the Western Australia to the Solomon Islands, Sydney, and Fiji. Among these islands she remained five months, during which time she made several cruises to the Friendly Islands, and finally left or Auckland, at which port she arrived on the 19th of April, meeting the Commodore's squadron.

Her presence here is due to the fact of her requiring coal in order to carry her through a cruise of inspection to the Auckland, Campbell, and Chatham Islands. From thence she is under orders to proceed to Wellington in time for the approaching session of Parliament, and will become the senior officer's ship on this part of the station.

She carries a complement of 170 men, including a sergeant's detachent of 24 marines. The Nymphe sailed from Port Chalmers for the Auckland Islands on Thursay afternoon

EVENING POST, 13 June 1876
ARRIVAL OF H.M.S. NYMPHE
... H.M.S. Nymphe was signalled off the Heads this afternoon from the Auckland Islands, but arrived too late to enable us to give an account of her trip. She will be stationed in Wellington during the present session of Parliament. We gave a description of her about a fortnight ago.
The following is a list of her officers:-
Captain:
* Francis G. SUTTIE;
Liuetenants:
* Cosmo F. M. GORDON
* Thomas E. COCHRANE
* Staff-Surgeon, Astley COOPER
* Paymaster, William H. WHICHELO
* Chief Engineer, William IRONMONGER
Sub-Lieutenants:
* Francis E. GROUBE
* Allan B. LESLIE
* Surgeon, Archibald McKINLAY
* Assistant-Paymaster, Alfred H. L. GILES
* Engineer, William H. G. WEBB
* Assistant-Engineer, Robert W. EDWARDS
* Gunner, Henry ARNOLD
* Boastwain, Thomas BURNETT
* Carpenter, J. HENDEROSN
* Midshipman, Walter GREY

28 July 1876 she arrived into the Port of Tauranga from Auckland
the BAY OF PLENTY TIMES recorded
... H.M.S. Nymphe, Captain Francis G. SUTTIE, arrived in harbour from Auckland at eleven o'clock yesterday morning, and anchored in the man of war anchorage. The Nymphe is a screw sloop of 1574 (1084) tons, and 2171 (300) horse power, carrying 9 heavy guns
... Lieutenant Cosmo Gordon and Mr Whichelo will be welcomed by many old friends, these officers having both been here before in H.M.S. Rosario; which vessel, it will be remembered, lay opposite the Masonic Hotel for many weeks during the troublous times in 1870

Francis Edmond Groube (1853-1932)
was half brother of George Groube (1839-1900) who died in Carterton, Wairarapa
They shared the same father, George Bromley Boulderson Groubie.
George's mother was Pauline Lily & had married his father in Calcutta in 1838. Nothing known about Paulina. His father next married Charlotte Carne BOULDERSON (1816-1878) in 1841 in Bombay and had 12 children. Francis Edmond Groube was their 9th child
OF INTEREST the name Boulderson runs down through both sides of the family

The HMS NYMPHE was an Amazon-class sloop, of the Royal Navy, built at the Deptford Dockyard and launched on 24 November 1866. She served in the East Indies and Australia, and was sold in 1884.
- some of the GROUBE family were born in the East Indies

PHOTO of the HMS NYMPHE's sister ship the HMS DRYAD (1866)

by ngairedith Profile | Research | Contact | Subscribe | Block this user
on 2011-08-21 08:56:07

ngairedith has been a Family Tree Circles member since Feb 2008.

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