The Old Old Mangere Bridge :
There was a Mangere Bridge before the Old Mangere Bridge that you are standing on the Southern end of. It was made of timber and opened in January 1875. Being timber, it was attacked by shipworms and soon became structurally unsound. This resulted in the total demolition of this bridge in 1914.
The Old Mangere Bridge:
Construction:
The Old Mangere Bridge you are standing on now was built in 1915 to replace the demolished one mentioned above. It was designed by RF Moore, the same man who designed Grafton Bridge. The bridge was designed to have concrete piles, a pioneering engineering feat at the time. As a result, Mangere Bridge is the oldest Bridge with concrete piles in New Zealand.
Heydays:
It had double tram tracks along it and allowed vehicles across it. But, the bridge itself is VERY low, so only small boats could pass underneath it. The new walkway and cycle way that is being but parallel on the other side of the new Mangere Bridge has been designed to allow larger boats under it, the main point of difference.
The demise:
Inadequate capacity, sinking piles and a ship that rammed into it, all led to the closure of the bridge to motor vehicles in 1983.
Today:
The bridge has remained the same since, and is used by many people for fishing, walking, running and cycling. As a result, be aware of muggles, especially on a good fishing day!
You are looking for a camoed magnetic mint tin. It contains a log book only. BYOP