The only specialised marine publication in Oceania that focuses on the maritime industry, from super yachts to small craft to large commercial ships, including coastal shipping, tugs, tow boats, barges, ferries, tourist, sport-fishing craft
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C O A S TA L C HARA CTERS NED NOLA AND THE MFV ADRIATIC BY BADEN PASCOE T he name Ned Nola and his seine boat Adriatic need no introduction to anyone who has been around the Auckland fishing industry over the last 50 years. In the late 60s I can remember his low wooded, well kept little ship, she was one of the very last counter stern fishing boats still working out of the Viaduct. Although well kept she had that well fished look about her and it was not hard to imagine that she had caught a lot of fish in her day. But fishing boats of this size don't catch fish without a cunning, dedicated, hard working skipper and deckhand. Well, Ned Nola was all of these over the years and this is his story. 18-year-old Ned (Nedjelko) arrived in New Zealand in 1926 on board the S.S. Ulemosa with eight other Croatian friends. A few years before they had been told that New Zealand was the land of milk and honey by other Croatians, or "Dallies" as the locals called them, who had had already settled here. The fare to New Zealand was a mega £42 and I would imagine this was a steerage class ticket. However, once they cleared customs they were met by John Totich who acted for the Croatian consul and had organized jobs for them in the gum fields of Dargaville. Just to mention, Ned's brother Bob had come to New Zealand about a year earlier, so at least he had family, many of these young men become very homesick after a few months. It is not known how long Ned toiled in the muddy gum fields but sometime in the late 1920s he took up a job as a farm hand somewhere in the Bay of Islands. It is understood he worked for an English speaking couple and he saw this opportunity as a way of improving his English. How long he stayed in this job is unclear, but by 1933 he had obtained a diploma in blasting and was working on a road building team in locations around Northland and he spoke about living in camps near Pihia and Paparoa. I would imagine that this job opportunity emerged due to the many Public Works Department schemes set up around this time. Ned Nola About 1935 Ned got his first job on a fishing boat based in Whangarei. Again, it is unknown who was his employer or on which boat he worked. During this period when he worked away from what he considered his hometown of Dargaville, he returned whenever he could and on February 26, 1936 he married Olga Nola. This is rather confusing as Olga's maiden name was already Nola. Ned was a keen dancer and danced the Kolo at many of the local balls and this may have been where he met Olga. In 1937 he was naturalized and became a British subject. While fishing out of Whangarei he was identified by Marino Devcich, the founder of one of Auckland's largest fishing fleets, Waitemata Fisheries, who by this time had four seine boats, Waitemata (1934), Waimana (1935), Waiwera (1936) and Waipawa (1940). Ned and Olga moved to Auckland to the rented accommodation in Richmond Road, their Grey Lynn. The property was owned by Tony and Ame Devcich. Amelia In 1937 Olga gave birth to a boy who was named Pete Peter and in 1938 they had another son, Paul. They com completed their family with Janet in 1945. N could see a future in fishing and dreamed Ned of o owning his own boat and setting up a business. But had one problem, no money, and the business cou only be set up with a good hands-on could par partner. It is highly likely that Ned's cousin Vl Vladimir Nola had the same dreams, and in 1943 the came true when the cousins purchased the they Ad Adriatic from another Dally fisherman, Sumich (f (first name unknown). Adriatic is a mystery boat, as it is understood S Sumich bought her from a Wellington fisherman a renamed her. It would be interesting to and k know her original name, and looking at her s was more than likely one of the early she I Island Bay fishing boats. Some of these boats were built by the highly respected local boat builder Joe Jukes and the others built by the lf snapper aki Gu of prime Haur fishermen themselves. Lifting a bag