Chelsea Sugar Refinery facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Chelsea Sugar |
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Chelsea Sugar, as seen from Birkenhead Wharf
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| General information | |
| Coordinates | 36°49′16″S 174°43′26″E / 36.821°S 174.724°E |
| Completed | 1884 |
| Designated: | June 26, 2009 |
| Reference #: | 7792 |
The New Zealand Sugar Company Limited is a very old and important business in Birkenhead, New Zealand. It's located on the northern side of Auckland's Waitemata Harbour. Most people know it as "Chelsea Sugar" because that's the brand name of their sugar. The place where they make sugar is often called the "Chelsea Sugar Refinery" or "sugar works".
The refinery started in 1884. It's still New Zealand's main place for making sugar products, both for homes and for food companies. Even when New Zealand allowed more foreign products in the 1980s, Chelsea Sugar remained strong. They even send their sugar to other countries! The refinery also has one of Auckland's deepwater ports. Big ships bring raw sugar from all over the world about every six weeks.
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History of Chelsea Sugar
For most of the 1800s, New Zealand had to import all its sugar. To help New Zealand become more self-sufficient, the government offered a reward in 1882 to the first company that could make sugar locally. The Australian Colonial Sugar Refining Company was already interested in New Zealand. They looked at different places and bought about 160 acres (0.65 km²) of farmland in Birkenhead. Later, they bought even more land, reaching 450 acres (1.8 km²).
This spot was perfect for a sugar factory. The Waitemata Harbour had deep water close to the shore for a port. There was also fresh water from Duck Creek, which flowed through the land. Plus, there was plenty of land and wood for building.
The name "Chelsea" was given to the site by the refinery's first customs officer. He named it after Chelsea in England, which was his hometown.
How the Company Started
The "New Zealand Sugar Company" was officially formed in June 1883. It was created by the Colonial Sugar Refining Company, the Victorian Sugar Company, and some important businessmen from Auckland. However, the price of sugar around the world dropped a lot in the 1880s. This led the New Zealand Sugar Company to join back with its parent company, Colonial Sugar, in 1888.
In 1959, the current New Zealand Sugar Company was formed to allow it to make its own decisions. Today, a company called Wilmar International owns 75% of the New Zealand Sugar Company, and Mackay Sugar owns 25%.
Building the Refinery
Building the new refinery started in 1883. About 150 workers prepared the land, filled in a natural lagoon, and built wharves by blasting rock. They also made dams using two-thirds of the 1.5 million bricks made right there on the site. The rest of the bricks were used for the buildings. By 1884, the refinery was up and running. It has been working 24 hours a day ever since!
Out of the 150 workers who built the refinery, 100 stayed to work there once it was finished. Most of them had moved from Auckland and settled in the area.
Some of the first machines and equipment came from Greenock in Scotland. Many of these old machines are still on site, showing the factory's long history.
Chelsea Village
When the refinery was being built, managers and company officers used existing farm cottages. But most workers lived in tents and temporary homes near the building site. This temporary camp was replaced by Chelsea Village. It had 35 cottages provided by the company within the refinery grounds, a bit away from the main Birkenhead village. It was planned to be a "model town" and had gardens, a church, a reading room, a school, and a shop.
However, the village didn't last many years. The houses lower down got damp and were empty by the early 1890s. By 1900, it was called the "barracks" and mostly housed single men. In 1905, health officials said the village wasn't safe. The worst houses were torn down, and the others were sold and moved from the site. Some of these moved cottages can still be seen on older streets around Birkenhead. The church, now called St Peters, was moved to Verrans Corner, a local suburb.
To keep its skilled workers close by in case of emergencies, the company built four semi-detached brick houses in 1909 where the old Chelsea Village used to be. These houses are still owned by Chelsea, but they are now rented to private people. For other workers, the company offered cheap housing loans. These loans helped build over a third of Birkenhead's new houses between 1910 and 1926, mostly on streets near the refinery like Colonial Road (named after the original sugar company) and Huka Road (named after the Māori word for sugar).
Sugar Workers
The famous poet James K Baxter worked at Chelsea as a cleaner in 1969. He was fired after three weeks and wrote a poem called "Ballad of the Stonegut Sugar Works" about how unhappy he was with the working conditions. However, not all workers felt the same way. It was known as a place of hard work, but there was a strong community spirit. The company also offered many benefits. The housing loans and steady jobs meant many workers stayed for a long time, with whole families working at the refinery for generations.
In the 2000s, about 240 people worked at the refinery.
Wider Impact of Chelsea Sugar
Growth of Birkenhead
Before the Harbour Bridge opened in 1959, getting to the North Shore from Auckland city was only possible by ferry. While some people traveled to the city for work, most of the area's growth depended on local jobs. Chelsea Sugar was a major reason for Birkenhead's growth and was a central part of the community. With Chelsea as the biggest employer, many people thought of Birkenhead as a "company town." In 1900, when the town had 1000 people, one-third of the men worked at the refinery. Local farmers and orchard owners also relied on temporary workers from Chelsea during their quiet seasons.
The opening of the bridge also made Auckland’s North Shore a convenient place to live. Because of this, Chelsea sold over 100 hectares of land for new homes. This area is now the suburb known as Chatswood, and it includes the Chelsea Sugar Refinery.
Before the sugar factory was built, the area was mostly farms and orchards, with a small village near Birkenhead Wharf. Within four years of the refinery opening, Birkenhead became a proper town. The growing town spread up the hill towards Chelsea Village, and a group of shops opened at Highbury, between the two original villages. Most local shops were supported by Chelsea and its workers. Workers also got involved in local community matters, even becoming mayors and councillors. The factory's shift sirens could be heard all over Birkenhead and acted like a 'clock' for everyone.
Auckland's Second Port
The Chelsea site was chosen because of its deep water access, which allowed a port to be built in 1884. Raw sugar came from places like Fiji, Cuba, Australia, Indonesia, and Peru to be refined. Until the Auckland Harbour Bridge was built, the finished sugar products were shipped out from this wharf. Other goods like coal, food, and mail were also handled at Chelsea Wharf.
This port still receives ships, usually large bulk carriers, bringing up to 30,000 tons of raw sugar. It's a private port, but ship arrivals are recorded by the Ports of Auckland and follow Customs and MAF rules. Because the ships are quite large, they need a special pilot to guide them, managed by Ports of Auckland's Harbour Control.
Some of the land was owned by the Ports of Auckland and leased to Chelsea. In 1997, Chelsea was allowed to buy this land, which was about nine hectares.
The port is located further into the harbour than the Harbour Bridge. This is why the bridge has a very large central span (243.8 meters) and is very high (43.27 meters at high tide), to allow ships to pass underneath.
Buildings and Culture
Chelsea is more than just a famous building on the coast. It has been very important to the local community's growth. It still helps to protect and encourage interest in local history and events, sponsoring things like school trips and local history books.
To help preserve its early history for future generations, the company has given its old records to the Birkenhead Public Library. These Chelsea Archives include company records, wage books, legal files, and shareholder lists from throughout its history.
The importance of the site's buildings and its role in society is recognized by Heritage New Zealand. The old factory buildings, the manager's house, and the brick houses are listed as Category II historic places. The entire site is recognized for its industrial history. As one of the largest factory complexes in New Zealand, and one of the few sugar refineries in the South Pacific, it helped New Zealand become an important economic power.
Throughout its history, Chelsea has allowed the public to visit its large grounds, which include wetlands, lakes, open spaces, and bush. This parkland and its access have become a public gift.
Another cultural impact of the refinery is how it led to the creation of the local football team, Glenfield Rovers. The club, first called Chelsea F.C. in 1960, started as a social club for staff at the refinery. It grew into a strong team in the Auckland region since the mid-1990s. The club even reached the semifinals of the national Chatham Cup competition in 2008.
Chelsea Sugar Today
Chelsea operates 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. It remains New Zealand's top company for sugar products.
Chelsea buys large amounts of raw sugar from around the world. This sugar arrives by ship and is then processed and packaged at the Refinery. Sales offices and warehouses across the country help distribute 200,000 tonnes of sugar each year. They supply both regular shoppers and food manufacturing companies.
About 20% of all the sugar Chelsea makes is sent to other countries, mostly to Australia and the Pacific Islands. New Zealand has a free market economy, which means there are no special taxes or help from the government for sugar. So, Chelsea competes fairly in the market.
Chelsea also provides money and support for various groups and projects in the local community. They also fund the Sugar Research Advisory Service, which is an independent group that does and reviews research about sugar.
