New Lynn is a residential suburb in West Auckland, New Zealand, located 10 kilometres to the southwest of the Auckland city centre. The suburb is located along the Whau River, one of the narrowest points of the North Island, and was the location of Te Tōanga Waka, a traditional waka portage between the Waitematā and Manukau harbours. The settlement developed in the early 20th century due to the brick and pottery industry, and in 1963 became a major commercial centre for Auckland with the opening of LynnMall, the first American-style shopping centre in New Zealand. Since 2010, New Lynn has been the focus of large-scale urban development, with the introduction of medium and high density housing close to the town centre and train station. History Early history and establishment The New Lynn area and the Whau River are a part of the traditional rohe of Te Kawerau ā Maki, an iwi that traces their ancestry to some of the earliest inhabitants of the Auckland Region. The traditional name for the area is Te Rewarewa, referring to a local creek. The Whau River was a borderland, marking the division of lands between Te Kawerau ā Maki and the Tāmaki Māori iwi of the Auckland isthmus: Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and in earlier times, Waiohua. The Whau River was one of the narrowest points between the Waitematā Harbour on the east coast of the island, and the Manukau Harbour on the west. Te Tōanga Waka, one of the most important portages in the area, allowed for waka to be transported between the two harbours, along the Whau River, the Avondale Stream (Wai Tahurangi), and a short overland path, marked in modern times by a road named Portage Road. Kotuitanga (Ken Maunder Park) marks the point where waka were no longer able to be paddled, and was traditionally a site used for waka construction. The banks of the Whau River were the locations of many seasonal fishing settlements. When European colonisation of the Auckland Region began, New Lynn was known as a barren scrubland. In 1845, the first wooden bridge was built across the Whau River. New Lynn was named by Frederick Utting, who surveyed the western Whau area in 1863. He named the area after King's Lynn in Norfolk, England, as the area reminded him of the countryside of his homeland. Land at New Lynn was first auctioned in 1865, but growth in