In 1965 [Dene] sought the aid of the National Trust of South Australia to start a branch on the Island. The State President of the Trust flew to the Island for the first public meeting in the banqueting room of the Kingscote Town Hall which Dene had booked in readiness. He also had advertised the meeting by placing notices in the windows of the town's shops.
- Extracts from Kangaroo Island Pioneers Association - Its Development and Progress 2005 (44 pages),- compiled by William P. Holmesby.
National Trust
Hope Cottage
The NSW branch was formed in 1945 and the Adelaide branch began in 1955. In 1965, Dene Cordes called a public meeting in Kingscote to consider the formation of a Kangaroo Island Branch. The meeting was well attended and was addressed by Mr Alexander who represented the parent body in Adelaide. Jack Elsegood was selected as the first chairman and Dene Cordes as secretary. It was all very well to form the organisation, but if the artefacts were to be displayed, accommodation needed to be found. Hope Cottage became that place.