Local Charity Saves Historic Davidson Cottage, Says “Hard Work Begins” as They Eye a Café and Better Roads

A quaint stone cottage in Netherton, Angus—once home to the ancestors of Harley-Davidson co-founder William A. Davidson—has been saved from demolition by the Davidson Legacy Preservation Group. This triumph comes after a whirlwind of fundraising efforts, a sizeable UK Government grant, and, unsurprisingly, a little help from Harley-Davidson themselves. Because, let’s be honest, if they weren’t going to chip in for the ancestral homestead, who else would?

The Money Trail: Fundraisers, Grants, and a Café Dream

In December 2023, the charity bagged a hefty £250,000 from the UK Government’s Community Ownership Fund. The catch? A strict one-year deadline to spend it. Because nothing motivates a nonprofit quite like the combination of a tight budget and an even tighter timeline.

The group managed to raise an additional £70,000—secured just in time for Christmas Eve, with Harley-Davidson stepping in to rev their engines and top up the pot. This brings us to today, where the immediate priority is actually buying the building. Yes, the whole “ownership” part of the Community Ownership Fund still needs to happen. Baby steps.

From “Demolition” to “Rocking and Rolling”

Project Coordinator Nyree Aitken is already thinking big, stating that the site will be “rocking and rolling” within five years. Presumably, this includes their plan to reflect the cottage’s original 10-person occupancy, because nothing says "historic preservation" like simulating 19th-century overcrowding.

But wait, there’s more! The community apparently wants a café on-site. Who conducted this survey? Did it come with a free latte for ticking “yes”? Either way, coffee and history are a surefire combination to draw in tourists—or at least locals looking for a flat white with a side of nostalgia.

The Davidson Backstory: Scotland to Motorcycles

For those unfamiliar, the cottage once housed Alexander “Sandy” Davidson, his wife Margaret, and their eight children. In 1857, they emigrated to America, where their son, William C. Davidson, became the father of William A. Davidson—who co-founded Harley-Davidson in 1903. That’s a lot of William Davids. But it’s a story of global impact, as the family went from rural Scotland to putting the vroom vroom into Americana.

Next Steps and Accessibility Goals

Now that demolition has been averted, the charity’s next focus is making the cottage accessible to all, including people with disabilities. Repairing the access road is high on the list—a move that seems both practical and noble, though one can’t help but imagine how Alexander Davidson would feel about his rugged homeland getting paved over for smoother entry.

Why It Matters

Beyond being a birthplace of Harley-Davidson lore, this project highlights the growing trend of communities taking heritage preservation into their own hands. Whether it’s a story of global influence or just a cozy spot for a cappuccino, the Davidson Legacy Preservation Group is shifting gears from saving history to ensuring its legacy thrives in modern times