History TIMELINE
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May 1884
Club is inaugurated at Ponsonby Club Hotel, Three Lamps
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Dec 1884
Clubhouse built in St Mary's Bay
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Jan 1885
Club colours
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1896-1900
Golden years of the Club - Large growth in members and Financial strength under Club Captain John Clark
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1909
Club uniform changed - previous one too similar to Hawkes Bay
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1914-1918
World War 1, 200 West Enders fought overseas with 20 losing their lives to the war.
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1918
St Marys Bay Shed damaged by Cyclone
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1923
First win by an 8 oar crew from WERC, Orakei to Judges Bay Race.
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1930
New WERC crest created with the motto Ake Ake Kia Kaha.
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1931
First Goodwill eights race between ARC and WERC to commemorate the compassion shown by ARC to help out after the cyclone damaged the club
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1933
First 8 boat purchased by the club from Melbourne University Boat Club.
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1934
Club’s 50th Jubilee.
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1936
First school crew took to the water in Auckland, a Mt Albert Grammar crew.
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1939-1945
World War 2
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1947
First Maadi Cup race held, won by Mt Albert Grammar crew. 1937 Mt Albert Eight pictured here.
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1949
WERC won it's first National Title Men's Championship 8 at Lake Karapiro.
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1950
WERC 8 was selected to represent NZ at the Empire Games Australia first, NZ Second
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1951
WERC adopted the bullseye onto the club's oars - The then club captain Dave Stotter saw it as a target to hit on every stroke.
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1952
Club Colours updated to two diagonal black stripes - inspired by Kerry Ashby having visited the States and seen Uni crews with diagonal stripes.
WERC Life Member Peter Watkinson pictured.
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1951-1958
WERC won the Championship 8 at the NZ Champs every year. 1955 crew pictured.
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1954
1954 Empire Games Vancouver , West Enders won Gold to D Rowland 1x, Silver Men's Coxed Four
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1956
With the construction of the Harbour bridge and motorway the Club moved out of St Marys Bay into temporary facilities on the breakwater (today the Ponsonby Cruising Club building)
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1959
The club’s 75th Jubilee.
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1963/64
Plans drawn up for a new clubhouse on the southern bank of the new marina.
The contract was let to AH Beamish and Sons to construct the new building at a cost of 30,757 pounds with an arrangement with the builder to permit volunteer club labour to defray costs.
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1966 - 1979
The start of a run of WERC Winning the Championship Double sculls every year, first with Peter and Murray Watkinson and then with Tony Hurt and John White
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1967
The new Clubhouse was opened
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1968
West End won it's first Olympic Gold medal with Dudley Storey in the Men's Coxed Four
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1972
West Ender Tony Hurt stroked the NZ Eight to the gold medal at the Munich Olympic Games.
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1974
Club was advised that the Westhaven Marina was to be expanded and the club would have no access to the water once completed
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1978
The Rowing World Championships were held at Lake Karapiro. On the organising committee were no fewer than 5 West Enders on the Organising Committee, led by Don Rowlands. This regatta was labelled by the President of FISA as 'The greatest Championship in all aspects in the 86 years of the Federation's activities' They were subsequently awarded the Olympic medal for their organisation of this event.
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1979
Mercer RC offered WERC half of the land donated by the Roose family on the western bank of the Waikato River at Mercer.
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1979
WERC won both the Centennial sculls for most sculling points at the regatta and Centennial Oar for the overall most points at the NZ Champs.
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1980
Mercer Boathouse was completed for the total cost of $17,500 for the land and buildings. Much of the money donated by Millicent Carter, wife of the late Club Captain Fred Carter.
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1984
1974 Los Angles Olympics, West Ender Shane O'Brien winning Gold in the 4- and Kevin Lawton winning Bronze in 4+
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1984
WERC Centennial Celebrations - One Hundred Years in St Mary's Bay Book Centennial celebration events were held at the RNZYS.
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1984
New Westhaven Clubrooms were completed
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1994
The decision of a Club SGM was made to move the Club to the Whau river
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1995
A significant milestone for the club was achieved in 1995 with women being allowed to be full members of the club. This was also the start of Baradene college rowing for WERC.
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1999
On the 30th of April West End RC connection with St Marys Bay came to an end with the club moving out of our clubhouse at Westhaven.
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2001
On the 28th October 2001 the club's new clubrooms on Saunders Reserve was official opened by the NZ Prime Minister Helen Clark.
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2004
West Enders Mahe Drysdale and Juliette Haigh competed at the Athen's Olympic Games.
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2004
St Peter’s College start their rowing program out of West End.
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2005
Three West Ender become World Champions. Mahe Drysdale won Gold in the Men's Single and Juliette Haigh and Nicky Coles won Gold in the Women's Pair at the World Rowing Championships at Gifu, Japan
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2010
Mt Albert Grammar restart their rowing program at West End after a 20+ year hiatus.
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2010
London Olympics, Mahe Drysdale wins Gold in the Men's Single and Juliette Haigh wins Bronze in the Women's Pair.
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2016
Mahe Drysdale wins his 2nd Olympic Gold medal at the Rio Olympics in the Men's single.
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2022
West End acquires a new clubhouse at 55 West End Rd, Cox's Bay to use as a base for Coastal Rowing.
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2023
WERC holds the very first Coastal Rowing Beach Sprints regatta in Auckland at St Heliers Bay Beach.