Behind the doors of Molong’s The Yarn Market Craft Cottage and Cobb & Co Coach House, you’ll find a vibrant creative community and a beautifully preserved piece of local history that’s well worth a visit.

Founded more than 50 years ago, The Yarn Market is one of the longest-running community-held craft markets in NSW. Located in the historic “Bowler Cottage” in Molong’s main street, the cottage was built in 1860, by James Bowler, and is one of the earliest brick buildings erected in Molong. Over the course of its long history, the cottage has served as a post office, a photography studio, a dental surgery, a newsagent and a private home.

But the fact it is still standing is due to the collaboration of talented creatives who founded The Yarn Market in 1972.

“The building was in a very bad way, there was a big hole in one of the back walls, it was just derelict,” says volunteer Graeme Lawford.

“But through many volunteers everything was put back into place and the cottage was restored and turned into what is now known as The Yarn Market.”

Bits of the history of the cottage can be found on the walls of the historic cottage today, among the dazzlingly varied display of craft goods and preserves made by locals and sold by volunteers.

“It's all handcrafted stuff. Knitted items, hand-spun wool that you can use to knit with, woodcraft, toys, crochet, greeting cards, preserves — there's all sorts of stuff,” says Graeme.

“We have 80-odd members, who make all this and sell it through the shop. The shop gets a commission from each sale and that's how we survive, on commissions and donations.”

Sitting behind The Yarn Market is another piece of local history that has been saved thanks to the craft group and volunteers, the circa-1875 Cobb & Co Coach House and part of the old stables that were attached to the “New Royal Hotel”, which stood on the Village Green.

In 1974, the ladies of the Yarn Market began negotiations to buy the derelict building which has since been restored.

Today in the Coach House you will find another piece of Molong History, the beautifully crafted embroidered screen depicting the town’s history that was created for the Bi-Centennial in 1988.

“It's all hand done and the wool was gathered from around the district, that is merino and alpaca wool, all hand-dyed hand-spun. They took two years to complete the screen,” says Graeme.

He said volunteers at the Yarn Market are happy to open the Coach House and show interested visitors through if they can.

The Yarn Market Craft Cottage is completely volunteer-run and open to the public from 10am to 4.30pm just about all year round.