Wairoa museum's archives were given a new lease on life yesterday as the doors were opened to the public after three weeks of renovations.
Many locals braved the sweltering heat to be a part of the special occasion that has been two years in the making.
Wairoa Museum Friends secretary Jenny Roper said the renovations were "hard work" and the sheer amount of archives now on display reflect this.
"It's been really busy and exciting. We originally only had 5 per cent of our archives out on display but now we have 93 per cent," she said.
The challenging project took 18 months of planning, six months of renovating and $200,000 of funding; much of which was donated by the community.