Owner Shane Simpson said he and wife Maria were delighted with the result.
"It has been a true labour of love, but what a project and what a house."
However, it was the history behind it that made the building come to life, Mr Simpson said.
Known as The Junction, the Inniscort St property is one of Central Otago’s oldest heritage properties.
Built in 1868 at the height of the Otago gold rush, it has been home to some of the most remarkable people in the district’s history.
The cottage was built on what was then known as The Junction — the point where the Kawarau River meets the Clutha Mata Au.
The first recorded owner was Nicholas Campion, licensee of the Diggers Rest Hotel in Bannockburn.
James Matthews, co-founder of the Cromwell Argus newspaper, took over in 1869.
Stephen Noble Brown, who took over the Argus from Mr Matthews and later became Cromwell mayor, was its third owner.
Mr Brown bought the four surrounding sections between 1876 and 1880.
Cromwell-born William David Jolly, a working partner in the family merchant firm D.A. Jolly & Sons, enlisted in 1915 at the age of 44.
Captain Jolly was killed at the Somme on July 14 , 1916, refusing a stretcher while his men needed care.
His widow Elizabeth raised their six children and a niece, Blanche, in the cottage for 33 more years, educating all seven children to tertiary level.
Blanche’s father was Elizabeth’s brother, Lieutenant Colonel James Waddell.
Lt-col Waddell, who grew up in Cromwell, became the first New Zealander to win a government military scholarship and pass the British Army officer examination.
After resigning from the British Army he joined the French Foreign Legion in 1900, serving for 26 years across Indo-China, Algeria, Morocco and the battlefields of World War 1.
Mr and Mrs Simpson said their restoration was guided by a six-page letter written in 1975 by Captain Jolly’s son Bill, which described in extraordinary detail the construction, layout and history of the house in which he grew up.
The Junction will be open to the public from 10am to 4pm.
The event will raise funds for the Otago Southland Rescue Helicopter Trust and gold coin donations would be gratefully received, Mrs Simpson said.
