Whangārei, New Zealand — 16 December 1978

The day the Bounty met the water.

On 16 December 1978, Whangārei gathered to witness the launch of a remarkable ship.

Built by Whangarei Engineering & Construction Ltd. (WECO), the 1978 Bounty replica had taken shape through the combined efforts of engineers, shipbuilders, traditional craftsmen and many skilled tradespeople. Created for a film project associated with producer Dino De Laurentiis and director David Lean, she was an ambitious undertaking: a ship built to bring the world of an eighteenth century sailing vessel to life.

Now, after months of work in the shipyard, the day had arrived.

A town gathers

The launch was more than the completion of a construction project. It was a public occasion for Whangārei a moment to celebrate the work carried out locally and the people whose skills had brought the vessel into being.

A contemporary account published in Arrowhead, the Fletcher Group magazine, in Winter 1979 recalled the launch as taking place in “a truly festive atmosphere”. The report describes a Māori concert party and a brass band among the celebrations.

The words offer a glimpse of the occasion beyond the ship itself: a community marking the arrival of something extraordinary. Read the original account in Arrowhead, Winter 1979.

From the shipyard to the water

The launch marked a turning point. The vessel that had existed as a commission, a set of plans and months of skilled labour was now afloat. But this was not the end of her story. It was the beginning of a life that would carry the Bounty far beyond the shipyard where she was built through film, voyages, new owners and changing purposes. The ship was launched in Whangārei on 16 December 1978. The story that followed would reach across oceans and generations.

The record of the day

The National Library of New Zealand holds a launch programme and associated ephemera documenting the ceremony. Together with contemporary accounts, photographs and the memories of people connected with the ship, these records help us reconstruct the day and preserve its place in the Bounty’s history. 

The search continues. We welcome photographs, documents and first hand memories from anyone who attended the launch, worked on the build or remembers the Bounty during her early years in New Zealand.