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Paterson ,Michel & Co,Westland Steam Coffee Mills, Wharf Street, Hokitika - coffee roasting
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DescriptionHow many people know that Hokitika once had a coffee roasting and grinding business that "exported" to other parts of New Zealand? A steam powered twin mill and charcoal roaster were erected in Wharf Street in 1865 by Parsons and Co. Various ownership ran the company over the years. This advert from 1886 is from when Paterson Michel and Co owned the business and were advertising Arab brand coffee.
Glenn Johnston Westland Steam Coffee Mills Timeline C19th
1865 Parsons & Co., a Melbourne firm, establish the business in Wharf Street Hokitika.
1868 Globe brand coffee is the biggest selling of their coffee range
1873 Business offered for sale by auction along with property in Tancred Street
1873 W T Parsons one of the three original company owners buys the business.
1873 New company trades as W T Parsons & Co
? Paterson Brothers buy business from W T Parsons
1877 Paterson Michel & Co buy business from Paterson Brothers.
1877 Globe brand and Crown brand are the main coffee brands being manufactured.
1886 Arab brand coffee being marketed NZ wide
1890 W Perry Wholesale and Retail Grocer also grinding and selling coffee. Plantation brand.
(*a local competitor coffee grinder with a gas engine powered mill)
1898 Arab, Globe, Royal and Crown brands of coffee being marketed.
1900 Paterson Michel & Co’s Westland Steam Coffee & Spice Mills continue in to the C20th
Glenn Johnston Looking at imports for the Port of Hokitika which were often listed by importer in the West Coast Times (now on Papers Past) gives a picture of the regular importation of coffee beans/raw coffee for processing at the Steam Coffee Mills. They came in by the crate, case, cask, bag, sack, barrel and tierce (an archaic cask size of 42 gallon liquid capacity used for stowing goods of varying weights). Similarly the papers describe some cargoes being shipped out of Hokitika including processed coffee along with gold, timber etc. that one might expect from the region.
Date of Photo1886Map[1] ContributorGlenn Johnston
Glenn Johnston Westland Steam Coffee Mills Timeline C19th
1865 Parsons & Co., a Melbourne firm, establish the business in Wharf Street Hokitika.
1868 Globe brand coffee is the biggest selling of their coffee range
1873 Business offered for sale by auction along with property in Tancred Street
1873 W T Parsons one of the three original company owners buys the business.
1873 New company trades as W T Parsons & Co
? Paterson Brothers buy business from W T Parsons
1877 Paterson Michel & Co buy business from Paterson Brothers.
1877 Globe brand and Crown brand are the main coffee brands being manufactured.
1886 Arab brand coffee being marketed NZ wide
1890 W Perry Wholesale and Retail Grocer also grinding and selling coffee. Plantation brand.
(*a local competitor coffee grinder with a gas engine powered mill)
1898 Arab, Globe, Royal and Crown brands of coffee being marketed.
1900 Paterson Michel & Co’s Westland Steam Coffee & Spice Mills continue in to the C20th
Glenn Johnston Looking at imports for the Port of Hokitika which were often listed by importer in the West Coast Times (now on Papers Past) gives a picture of the regular importation of coffee beans/raw coffee for processing at the Steam Coffee Mills. They came in by the crate, case, cask, bag, sack, barrel and tierce (an archaic cask size of 42 gallon liquid capacity used for stowing goods of varying weights). Similarly the papers describe some cargoes being shipped out of Hokitika including processed coffee along with gold, timber etc. that one might expect from the region.
Date of Photo1886Map[1] ContributorGlenn Johnston
Shown in this image
Location (city or town)HokitikaOrganisation (eg business) Parsons and CoEventHokitika coffee exports
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Category Tagfood
From Facebook
Date Created6th April 2020CommentsPaulAnthony Teens Sure Paterson And Michel we’re about where the gold room is now when I was a kid
Ian Gilbertson It's a really interesting story that glen has touched on. Parsons and sons who were' purveyors of fine teas and coffees' brought their business to hokitika from Melbourne including the Bach steam engine. This engine is now the oldest of its type left in the world and is on display at the Westland industrial heritage park. I have tracked down an original coffee tin from a collector in the u.s. and it features an Arab in traditional clothing. Bach actually emigrated to Auckland and set up an engineering firm up there. Lot's more about this story at the park....
Glenn Johnston The business had its own tin smith shop at the rear of their premises that made the tins that some of the coffee was packaged in. The biggest selling brand in the early days was Globe brand coffee available in square and round tins of differing capacities. They also made their own packing cases on the premises.
Glenn Johnston Parsons & Co in 1868 operated out of both Melbourne and Hokitika. i.e. they didn't close down their Melbourne operation before starting up in Hokitika in 1865.
Glenn Johnston Westland Steam Coffee Mills Timeline C19th
1865 Parsons & Co., a Melbourne firm, establish the business in Wharf Street Hokitika.
1868 Globe brand coffee is the biggest selling of their coffee range
1873 Business offered for sale by auction along with property in Tancred Street
1873 W T Parsons one of the three original company owners buys the business.
1873 New company trades as W T Parsons & Co
? Paterson Brothers buy business from W T Parsons
1877 Paterson Michel & Co buy business from Paterson Brothers.
1877 Globe brand and Crown brand are the main coffee brands being manufactured.
1886 Arab brand coffee being marketed NZ wide
1890 W Perry Wholesale and Retail Grocer also grinding and selling coffee. Plantation brand.
(*a local competitor coffee grinder with a gas engine powered mill)
1898 Arab, Globe, Royal and Crown brands of coffee being marketed.
1900 Paterson Michel & Co’s Westland Steam Coffee & Spice Mills continue in to the C20th
Glenn Johnston Looking at imports for the Port of Hokitika which were often listed by importer in the West Coast Times (now on Papers Past) gives a picture of the regular importation of coffee beans/raw coffee for processing at the Steam Coffee Mills. They came in by the crate, case, cask, bag, sack, barrel and tierce (an archaic cask size of 42 gallon liquid capacity used for stowing goods of varying weights). Similarly the papers describe some cargoes being shipped out of Hokitika including processed coffee along with gold, timber etc. that one might expect from the region.
G Johnston 7 April 2020
Robin Neill
The remains of the the Boiler used to generate the steam for the coffee making process is on display at the Westland Industrial Heritage Park near the
Jim Staton
We have the Bach portable steam boiler at the Westland Industrial Heritage Park that powered the coffee bean grinding mills, it was of loaded from a sailing ship Dec 1864 apparently onto Gibson Quay. They ground four pound of coffee and one pound of spices every minute. We have a fairly complete history of the portable boiler.
Ian Gilbertson It's a really interesting story that glen has touched on. Parsons and sons who were' purveyors of fine teas and coffees' brought their business to hokitika from Melbourne including the Bach steam engine. This engine is now the oldest of its type left in the world and is on display at the Westland industrial heritage park. I have tracked down an original coffee tin from a collector in the u.s. and it features an Arab in traditional clothing. Bach actually emigrated to Auckland and set up an engineering firm up there. Lot's more about this story at the park....
Glenn Johnston The business had its own tin smith shop at the rear of their premises that made the tins that some of the coffee was packaged in. The biggest selling brand in the early days was Globe brand coffee available in square and round tins of differing capacities. They also made their own packing cases on the premises.
Glenn Johnston Parsons & Co in 1868 operated out of both Melbourne and Hokitika. i.e. they didn't close down their Melbourne operation before starting up in Hokitika in 1865.
Glenn Johnston Westland Steam Coffee Mills Timeline C19th
1865 Parsons & Co., a Melbourne firm, establish the business in Wharf Street Hokitika.
1868 Globe brand coffee is the biggest selling of their coffee range
1873 Business offered for sale by auction along with property in Tancred Street
1873 W T Parsons one of the three original company owners buys the business.
1873 New company trades as W T Parsons & Co
? Paterson Brothers buy business from W T Parsons
1877 Paterson Michel & Co buy business from Paterson Brothers.
1877 Globe brand and Crown brand are the main coffee brands being manufactured.
1886 Arab brand coffee being marketed NZ wide
1890 W Perry Wholesale and Retail Grocer also grinding and selling coffee. Plantation brand.
(*a local competitor coffee grinder with a gas engine powered mill)
1898 Arab, Globe, Royal and Crown brands of coffee being marketed.
1900 Paterson Michel & Co’s Westland Steam Coffee & Spice Mills continue in to the C20th
Glenn Johnston Looking at imports for the Port of Hokitika which were often listed by importer in the West Coast Times (now on Papers Past) gives a picture of the regular importation of coffee beans/raw coffee for processing at the Steam Coffee Mills. They came in by the crate, case, cask, bag, sack, barrel and tierce (an archaic cask size of 42 gallon liquid capacity used for stowing goods of varying weights). Similarly the papers describe some cargoes being shipped out of Hokitika including processed coffee along with gold, timber etc. that one might expect from the region.
G Johnston 7 April 2020
Robin Neill
The remains of the the Boiler used to generate the steam for the coffee making process is on display at the Westland Industrial Heritage Park near the
Jim Staton
We have the Bach portable steam boiler at the Westland Industrial Heritage Park that powered the coffee bean grinding mills, it was of loaded from a sailing ship Dec 1864 apparently onto Gibson Quay. They ground four pound of coffee and one pound of spices every minute. We have a fairly complete history of the portable boiler.
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West Coast New Zealand History (4th Feb 2026). Paterson ,Michel & Co,Westland Steam Coffee Mills, Wharf Street, Hokitika - coffee roasting. In Website West Coast New Zealand History. Retrieved 22nd Apr 2026 02:06, from https://westcoast.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/27597