This stone hut, located within the former Otekaike Station, served as hearth and home for William Dansey, an early runholder of Run 28. A reminder of the early accommodations of runholders in these isolated areas, Dansey’s Hut has historical and architectural significance.

Located close to Hille’s Cave (List No. 2422) is the small limestone hut associated with pastoralist William Dansey and is believed to date from the late 1850s. According to historian Robert Pinney the house was built by James Dunn and James May. William Dansey was established on Otekaike by May 1858 and was the youngest son of a scholarly rector, was educated at Exeter College, Oxford. He arrived in Port Chalmers in December 1854 and after visiting Port Nicholson and Nelson, made his way to the Waitaki Valley. Dansey had a house on Run 28 by early 1859, as he is reported as an elector in the Waitaki District in April of that year. A survey plan from April 1861 shows Dansey’s freehold – a 92 acre block with his house, stable and futtah, and an adjacent 11 acre block with ‘men’s house’ and woolshed.’ Dansey laid the foundation for the next runholder – Robert Campbell – who would make the property one of the most significant in New Zealand.

The hut is a small single gable, single room stone structure. Around 1993, the hut was ‘restored’ – debris removed from the interior, the concrete floor removed (returning to the original earth floor), the roof framing replaced and the iron replaced with thatch. It is not known when the hut was last occupied. In 2016, the Dansey’s Hut remains a historic feature within Campbell Park Estate.