One of Cromwell's hidden gems is revealing more of itself to visitors and locals.
The revamped, expanded Cromwell Museum has relaunched with a new logo and a new governing body.
A function to celebrate the new era for the facility was held on site last week and museum board chairwoman Edith McKay said the function was about the future, as well as the past.
The members of the seven-strong trust, formed last year to govern the museum, had a diversity of strengths and were a great team, she said.
''But without the support of the community, all our efforts would be in vain.''
The museum previously shared its premises in the mall with the town's information centre but the i-Site moved to a stand-alone building on the outskirts of town in December.
That meant the museum could expand into the former i-Site, almost doubling its display space.
Mrs McKay said the museum was still run by volunteers but it was taking a more professional approach to its activities.
Visitors could expect more changes to the displays and a wider variety of exhibits with more space to rotate the 5227 items in its collection.
Lighting had been improved and a research room would soon form part of the museum.
The first two trustees appointed were Mrs McKay, who was the convener of the Cromwell Genealogy Group and Martin Anderson, the chairman of the Otago Goldfields Heritage Trust.
Mr Anderson said the museum board had a ''fruitful and collaborative '' relationship with the district council and Cromwell Community Board and it was grateful for its annual operating grant from the council.
As well as managing the museum collection and fostering a sense of heritage, the group wanted to provide an educational experience.
He urged about 40 people who attended the function to ''promote the museum to your friends and customers''.
Central Otago's deputy mayor and Cromwell board chairman Neil Gillespie said the facility was a hidden gem.
''Far too many people in Cromwell don't know what's here.''
The board was grateful for the sterling work done by volunteers but he said it was important to get new people interested in volunteering, to ease the burden on ''far too small a group'', many of whom devoted time to more than one organisation.
He acknowledged how important the grant was for the continued operation of the museum.
''The cost of things is still going up so if you want to ensure the grant continues, you'll have to continue to make sure we have no reason to say no to the request.''
