Pioneer Cottage Buderim is an example of early settlement of Buderim as an agricultural area, based originally on the cultivation and processing of sugar cane. It is one of the oldest surviving residences in Buderim, remains substantially intact, and demonstrates the characteristics of an early 1880’s farmhouse built of local timbers no longer generally available. The cottage was gifted to the Buderim community in 1965 and there has been substantial community effort in restoring and maintaining the cottage in good condition.

The cottage was erected for Buderim settlers John Kerle Burnett, his wife Ann North and their family by Harry Board, on 20 acres selected in 1878 for £15. Constructed of pit sawn timber it functions as a house museum and headquarters of the Buderim Historical Society.

Local timbers were used to construct the house – tallowwood (Eucalyptus microcorys) for floor bearers, white beech (Gmelina leichhardtii) for floors, walls and ceilings, and red cedar (Toona ciliata) for doors and joinery. The timber was felled from the property or nearby and pit sawn. The core of the building initially comprised a central hallway and four rooms – front parlour, front bedroom, rear dining room and rear bedroom. The stairs and upstairs bedrooms were added as the family grew.

The original shingle roof was replaced between 1907 and 1909 with corrugated iron, and the rear verandah was enclosed in the 1920s. The original kitchen and oven were behind the main building.