The various histories of Miss Ōmokoroa

If you haven’t seen the August-September history display at TOLO yet, you may not know that in the 1950s and 60s, there were three versions of ‘Miss Ōmokoroa’.

When the original Boat Club held its regatta, usually on Anniversary Weekend, the day often ended with a Miss Ōmokoroa contest. Young women paraded in their bathing suits, and even younger girls vied for Miss Junior Ōmokoroa. A sash and monetary awards were given to the winners.

Whether this was annual or just alternate years or some years, we are still trying to find out. The Ōmokoroa History Group would like to hear from anyone who has information on participants, winners, or frequency. Photos to add to our collection would be most welcome too.

Eddie Adams named his speed boat ‘Miss Ōmokoroa”. The late Jocelyn Hicks collated background information on this for the Western Bay of Plenty Museum in Katikati when they held an exhibition on Sporting Heroes of the Bay. There are photos of the boat at TOLO, both at Ōmokoroa and at Lake Taupo. Eddie travelled widely with his pride and joy in the 1950s and 1960s.

Miss Ōmokoroa, the racehorse. Allan and Nelle Unsworth owned racehorses in the late 1950s. Their share milker, Dave Perkinson, trained horses for them, training them on local beaches as well as taking them into the Tauranga race course regularly for familiarisation runs. ‘Miss Ōmokoroa’ and ‘Jealous Lady’ were Allan’s, while Nelle owned ‘Sapphire Star’. Photos of these are also in the current history display at TOLO.

Are you interested in local history? Meetings with a speaker or visits are held every two months. Contact chairperson Chris Wright (548 0088) or secretary Jo Cameron (5480 655).