Published in 1997, the book
Walls for Water
Pioneer Dam Building in New Zealand

The Author Robert (Bob) Offer had over 30 years experience in dam construction in New Zealand. Most of this experience was with the Ministry of Works. His involvement in inspecting dams built early in the 1900's kindled the interest that led to the publication of the book after tens years research.

The book tells the story of a mostly hidden heritage, a heritage of dams built to exploit timber and gold and store water for growing towns and cities.
These dams were built in a variety of forms by bushmen, miners, and engineers. They used a variety of materials ncluding timber, masonry, earth, and concrete. Many of the larger well engineered dams are still in service today.
The majority, built for the short term, have been abandonned, decayed or washed away. Some have been breached, some converted to other uses. If they could be counted they would number in their thousands. They were an integral part of the post 1840 development of New Zealand.
The book places the kauri dams, the mining dams, and the water supply dams on the historical record and sets them in the industrial and social context of their time in the hundred years from 1840.

The timber dam shown on the right is one form of the so-called “kauri” dams used to flush kauri logs down river and stream.

The Teviot dam shown below was one of several Otago masonry mining dams.

Concrete gravity dams for water supply like the Wanganui one below were built from 1903 onwards