Kiama’s District and Historical Society isn’t just celebrating 50 years of survival — it’s celebrating 50 years of momentum.

The society marked its anniversary on Saturday 22 November with a full house, cake cutting and appearances from Mayor Cameron McDonald, State MP Fiona Phillips and Aboriginal patron Dr Aunty Joyce Donovan.

Vice President and Treasurer Dr Tony Gilmour said the milestone reflects both the society’s longevity and its growing influence.

“Plenty of organisations survive for 50 years, but not many are growing, expanding and increasing their influence,” Gilmore said. “Survival is one thing, but prospering is something else.”

The society formed in early 1975 after then-Mayor Neville Fredericks called a public meeting to gauge community interest in establishing a local history group.

The answer was a clear yes, and within months the society was up and running. Fredericks was also in attendance at Saturday’s celebration — exactly 50 years on.

What began as a small group — often just ten people in a room — now regularly attracts standing-room only crowds. Gilmour said the society’s influence has grown just as quickly, becoming a central voice in discussions about Kiama’s heritage.

“If there’s a heritage issue in Kiama, the historical society is front and centre,” he said.

Its most famous achievement was saving the Pilot’s Cottage.

When the harbour pilot role was centralised in 1978, the building became vacant and a series of “weird and wonderful ideas” emerged, including demolishing it or turning it into a fast-food outlet.

“They wanted to knock out the internal walls and fry food in one corner, with a bit of history if you asked nicely,” Gilmour said. The society, backed by Kiama Council, pushed back and ultimately secured the site as a museum. It officially opened in 1988 and remains one of Kiama’s most treasured heritage buildings.

Gilmour, who spent two decades in banking and management consulting, has helped lead the society into a more modern, accessible organisation.

The group now maintains an active website, responds to historical inquiries each week and uses digital tools to reach wider audiences.

The committee is even planning to expand further, with goals to launch regular Kiama Community Radio segments and create more video content, including a YouTube channel.

“We have to change, and we are changing,” Gilmour said. “Younger people get information differently. If we don’t adapt, the message won’t get across.”

He has also been working to fill the gaps in Kiama’s written history.

His new book, Celebrating History, Defending Heritage, documents the society’s biggest campaigns and explains how heritage protection actually works on the ground.

The last comprehensive history of Kiama was published in 1960. “I’m chipping away,” Gilmour said.

“It’s better than spending five years writing a single enormous book.”

He said preserving heritage is an ongoing task, especially as development pressures increase and public funding dwindles.

“Heritage doesn’t stop,” he said. “You have to keep finding new uses for old buildings and keep them looked after. We’re never going to put our feet up and say we’ve succeeded.”

The society now has 185 paid members — making it one of the largest community groups on the South Coast — and is working to grow its volunteer base for the Pilot’s Cottage Museum.

Museum volunteers greet visitors on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, and the group is now training new recruits.

Gilmour said involvement is slowly returning to pre-covid levels, but there is still work to do.

For newcomers and younger residents, Gilmour said local history helps people feel grounded and connected.

“We need to have informed local people of all ages, having a say in what the town should be like, and for people to know what important things we have done in this area and the important people who've come from here as well,” Gilmour said.

“I think it's all part of keeping people informed and interested.”

Dr Tony Gilmour’s new book can be found here with free delivery in the Kiama council area. All proceeds to Kiama Historical Society.