This 200-year-old English cottage, which was built over night, is now fighting for its life

In Wales, UK, villagers are fighting to save a 200-year-old cottage that has endured for fifty years. Penrhos Cottage is a historic house in the Pembrokeshire town of Llanycefn. Built around 1800, it was inspired by the old Welsh concept of a “tŷ unnos,” or one-night dwelling. According to an ancient Welsh custom, if a person could construct a home on common land between the hours of sunset and sunrise, the land would become theirs freehold. Maria and Rachel Williams, siblings, were the final occupants of the home; they occupied the thatched cottage until 1968. Following Rachel’s death at the age of eighty-two, midwife Maria relocated to a neighboring hamlet. Since then, no one has been living in the home, and it has remained unoccupied.

Reporter: Since the house was purchased by the council in the 1970s, the villagers have launched a push to find volunteers and generate money for repairs. In the future, they also want to turn the home into a museum.

Penrhos Cottage still has a Welsh dresser full of china plates and cups, as well as the cooking tools the sisters used. The overnight-built cabin was eventually restored in 1849 using clom, a concoction of straw, mud, and clay.

The man who lives next door, Eifion Evans, told the newspaper that he had wonderful childhood memories of the home. They used to wave to Maria and Rachel as they left the cottage to get the school bus.

He said, “When we got home from school in the afternoon, they would have a large box of sweets with a sweet for each of us, or a little biscuit or chocolate.”

The cottage was originally merely two rooms, sleeping quarters, and a kitchen, but it was previously home to a family of up to twelve people. Originally opening as a museum in 1972, access is now restricted by appointment only via the council.

A meeting to debate the future of the cottage is scheduled for the village hall, and in the meantime a new organization called Friends of Penrhos is being founded. Additionally, Pembrokeshire Council has said that it is willing to collaborate with the organization in order to maintain the historically significant building and improve its accessibility for everybody.