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...
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...
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...