Remains of 19th-Century Bridge Found in New Zealand

PICTON, NEW ZEALAND—Stuff.co.nz reports that traces of what may be a nineteenth-century wooden bridge have been found in the northeastern region of New Zealand’s South Island. Archaeologist Kirsty Sykes spotted the possible bridge foundations near the Waitohi Stream while playing with her daughter. “In 1866, there was a whole lot of people complaining about the disgrace that Picton doesn’t have a nice big bridge,” Sykes said. She also found a newspaper article published in 1913 expressing concern over the condition of the structure and limiting speed on the bridge to a walking pace. Some of the nineteenth-century piles were left in the ground when a new bridge was built at the site in the early twentieth century, she added. A sample of the old wood will be analyzed. To read about a recent DNA study of some of New Zealand’s first settlers, go to “Kiwi Colonists.”