Note: on private land, not visible from road. Please respect the privacy of the property owners. During WWII, the idea of building fuel reservoirs in isolated and semi-concealed spots was adopted. A site near the east side of the railway tunnel between Swanson and Waitakere was chosen; it was tucked into a fold of the hill just south of the Read more...
Construction of the Waitakere tunnel was a laborious task, due to hard clay and the need to fill surrounding swampland. Construction gangs of largely Maori and Irish workers worked at both ends of the Henderson-Kumeu link with one gang at the Waitakere tunnel site. There were camps for the men and fenced-off grazing for the large teams of horses that 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...
A rail route north from Auckland to link up with the Riverhead-Helensville line was identified in 1874, to run from Newmarket to Glen Eden, later to be extended to Riverhead. Residents of the neglected areas of Henderson and surrounding country districts, were disappointed and angry that the railway was not coming through. Protest meetings, letters to the press and petitions Read more...
