Taylors Mistake

Suburb in Christchurch, New Zealand

Te Onepoto / Taylors Mistake
Suburb
The beach at Te Onepoto / Taylors Mistake
Location of Taylor's Bay
Coordinates: 43°35′00″S 172°46′32″E / 43.5833°S 172.7755°E / -43.5833; 172.7755
Country	New Zealand
City	Christchurch
Local authority	Christchurch City Council
Electoral ward	Heathcote
Area [1]
• Land	19 ha (47 acres)
Population  (2018 Census)[2]
• Total	81

Scarborough		(Pegasus Bay)
Sumner	Te Onepoto / Taylors Mistake
(Port Hills)		(Awaroa / Godley Head)

Te Onepoto / Taylors Mistake is an area in New Zealand's South Island, at the southeastern extremity of the city of Christchurch^[3] Taylors Mistake is a bay adjacent to the locality, on the north side of Awaroa / Godley Head, on the northern edge of Banks Peninsula.^[4]

The name Te Onepoto / Taylors Mistake is one of New Zealand's dual placenames. The Māori portion, Te Onepoto, means short or little beach. For the English portion, the Lyttelton Times in 1865 said it was "originally called Vincent's Bay, and more recently Taylor's Mistake."^[5] The name "Taylor's Mistake" originated from an incident involving a man named Edward Taylor, who was the first European settler to own land in the area. The story goes that in the mid-19th century, Edward Taylor was surveying the coastline for potential land to purchase. He mistook the bay near what is now known as Taylors Mistake for the nearby Pigeon Bay, which he intended to buy. However, upon realizing his mistake, he continued to call the area "Taylor's Mistake." Over time, the name stuck, and it became the official name for the bay and surrounding area.^{[citation needed]}

There are almost 50 small century-old seaside baches remaining on the coastal strip between Hobsons Bay to the north, and Boulder Bay to the south. Some are cave baches,^[6][7][8] with Whare Moki being considered the oldest surviving example in New Zealand.^[9][10][11] Most of the baches were, in 1995 or 2016, recognised as heritage assets by either Heritage NZ or by the Christchurch City Council under the resource management act.^[12][13][14] The baches appear in vernacular works of art and poetry, including a 1956 painting by Bill Sutton (artist) held at the Christchurch Art Gallery^[15]

The beach is popular with swimmers and surfers,^[16] and a livecam operated by some of the bach-holders^[17] allows conditions to be checked in advance. The Taylors Mistake Surf Life Saving Club^[18] was established at the beach, by bach-holders and others, in 1916.^[19] During World War II, hills above the beach were fortified with two machine gun posts, to guard the Godley Head coastal defence battery.^[20]

• Media related to Taylors Mistake at Wikimedia Commons