When demolition seemed the only option for a derelict cottage, a group of dedicated volunteers said ‘no’ to knocking it down and ‘yes’ to preserving this important piece of Alexandra’s pioneer history.  

That was back in the 1990s when the lease for the mud brick cottage known as Vallance Cottage expired.

William Vallance built the cottage in 1897, where he and his wife Jean raised eight children in the tiny mud brick home.

This weekend heritage Central Otago celebrated the cottage and those who toiled to bring it back to life with an open day for the public on Sunday (February 5)

Central Stories Museum and Gallery Patron Gillian Grant was at the open day to take people through the historic cottage.

Watch Gillian explain how the restoration of the cottage came about.

PHOTO: The Central App