Iorangi was built by Logan brothers and launched in 1901. She was commissioned by Alexander Turnbull for cruising in the Marlborough Sounds and spent her first years in Wellington.
Turnbull wrote an account of his cruises in Iorangi, a copy of which is now held at the National Library of New Zealand, the Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington.
In 1908 Turnbull sold Iorangi and the funds raised were used to partly fund the building of this library. Iorangi’s powerful section – her full, rounded bow, and fine, sleek lines are a design transition from the traditions of the 19th century, toward the more powerful lines of the modern era. She has had a number of refits in her lifetime, the most recent in 2003. Her hull timbers were still perfectly sound and she was given completely new fastenings and was recaulked. She also acquired a new flush deck in place of a former cabin, and a modern mast and rig. Iorangi races successfully both in Auckland’s modern and classic fleets, sometimes ironically beating yachts 100 years her junior.
