Unfortunately, Gainsborough Old Hall is due to remain closed until the summer of 2021. We will keep this page up to date with the latest information from English Heritage who have taken over the site.
Gainsborough Old Hall
‘Gainsborough Old Hall is over 500 years old and is one of the best preserved timber framed manor houses in the UK’
Gainsborough was the escape point for the Separatists in May 1608, as they made their way to Immingham from there (after a failed escape attempt from Boston), and then onto Holland. The Old Hall is not far from the riverside, where some of the Separatists boarded a barge for their journey up the River Trent. There are also suggestions that the Gainsborough Separatists may have worshipped in the Old Hall secretly if the Hickman family allowed it.
Whether this is true or not, Gainsborough Old Hall is a stunning example of the sort of building the pilgrims would have known during their years in England, especially the Brewster family. It’s thought that the Brewster family home in the original Scrooby Manor would have been similar to the Old Hall.
Gainsborough was the escape point for the Separatists in May 1608, as they made their way to Immingham from there (after a failed escape attempt from Boston), and then onto Holland. The Old Hall is not far from the riverside, where some of the Separatists boarded a barge for their journey up the River Trent. There are also suggestions that the Gainsborough Separatists may have worshipped in the Old Hall secretly if the Hickman family allowed it.
Whether this is true or not, Gainsborough Old Hall is a stunning example of the sort of building the pilgrims would have known during their years in England, especially the Brewster family. It’s thought that the Brewster family home in the original Scrooby Manor would have been similar to the Old Hall.
Gainsborough also makes an important stop on a tour of the Pilgrim Roots Region because of influential characters John Robinson and John Smyth. The Pilgrim exhibition at the Old Hall has been reimagined for 2020, exploring local themes and retelling this story as part of the 400th anniversary.
Nearby, the United Reformed Church’s John Robinson Memorial Church features a Mayflower Room which explores the church’s heritage and Gainsborough’s place in the story.
Also in the town, the Gainsborough Heritage Centre hosts temporary exhibitions which relate to local heritage stories and sites. A recent exhibit there focussed on Mayflower II, the replica Mayflower ship gifted to America from England for their support in the Second World War.
Nearby, the United Reformed Church’s John Robinson Memorial Church features a Mayflower Room which explores the church’s heritage and Gainsborough’s place in the story.
Also in the town, the Gainsborough Heritage Centre hosts temporary exhibitions which relate to local heritage stories and sites. A recent exhibit there focussed on Mayflower II, the replica Mayflower ship gifted to America from England for their support in the Second World War.