Shotover Valley | Chris Gregory's Alphathreads

Mitchell’s Cottage – Fruitlands, Central Otago

The stonefruit growing area of Fruitlands lies on State Highway 8 between Lawrence and Alexandra, but before any fruit was grown in the area men came here looking for gold.

Mitchell's Cottage - Fruitlands, Central Otago, New Zealand

Very quickly the diggers discovered Central Otago’s rigorous climate and the need for good shelter. Mitchell’s Cottage utilised the traditional building materials favoured by the diggers, some of whom came from the Shetland Islands. One such was John Mitchell, who had been a gold digger in the Shotover Valley near Queenstown before seeking his fortune here at Bald Hill Flat, as the area was once known. He first erected a corrugated iron cottage on the site, then over the following years he and his brother Andrew used skills learned from their stonemason father in the Shetland Islands to construct the present stone dwelling. The cottage foundation was once a massive rock tor which was quarried for building stone for the cottage and surrounding stone walls. John Mitchell and his wife Jessie raised 10 children, most of whom were brought up in this remote home.

In 1980 the cottage and its grounds were acquired as a historic reserve. The building has been restored in the style of the turn of the century.

In the foreground of the above image is a sun-dial platform chipped by John Mitchell from a solid block of schist.