Tea Rooms

The Waitakere Filter Station was built in 1927-1928 by an all-Dalmatian work force on Fletcher Construction’s payroll. Excavations were done by hand. The original compressors used in the filters were made by Sandy Filtration and were still in use in 1991. Auckland City Council employed four men an eight-hour rotating shifts, three on and one off duty. The men and Read more...

Have you ever taken a train north of Swanson? This journey was once commonplace for anyone travelling north of Auckland to Helensville, Wellsford, or Northland, but railway travel north of Swanson is now unusual. Official railway passenger service to Swanson and Waitakēre began on 18 July 1881 and remained uninterrupted until July 2015. But things have become complicated in recent Read more...

These foundations are a bit of a mystery. There is no overbridge visible in this location in any of the areal photos. The foundations may be visible but it is not clear enough to be sure. Were they relocated there as part of the work to create the park when the park was formed in 2000? Or was it uncovered by Read more...

The Swanson Railway Station Project began at the end of 1993 when Waitakere Community Board members David Harre and Penny Hulse heard that the old Avondale Railway Station (built in 1879) was to be demolished and replaced with a modern corrugated iron shelter. The neglected and vandalised station had been closed since 1986. Since it was well worth saving, NZ Read more...