Jane Bell gained public attention in 1840 after the death of her child, conceived after being raped; she was incarcerated for two years on Rottnest Island.

The land on which the cottage ruins stand, 8.1 hectares (20 acres), was purchased by James Bell (1821–1911) in 1854 or 1855 from local landholder Henry Mead.

Bell was a boat builder and ship's carpenter by profession and had been living in Mandurah, where he had been farming since 1847, with his family prior to the purchase.

[2] Jane Bell (née Green) had come to Western Australia in 1839 through the sponsorship of the Children's Friend Society, and worked as a domestic servant at the magistrate's residence in Toodyay.

The swampy nature of the ground where the hut stood proved cold and damp in winter and was too small for the extended family of ten living there.

He built the first school in the region and the Bell family became prominent in early local commercial enterprises and civil developments.

[1] Little is known about the history of the cottage after passing out of the hands of the Bell family, but the report compiled for the state heritage listing presumed that it saw limited occupation after that and no significant alterations.