Plan to Save Scrooby Manor: The Forgotten Birthplace of a Pilgrim Father
- Editor OGN Daily
- 18 minutes ago
- 2 min read
A historian says she hopes to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds to try to save a piece of "forgotten" Pilgrim history from developers.
Scrooby Manor in Nottinghamshire, central England, is the birthplace of a Pilgrim Fathers who sailed to America on the Mayflower. The home dates back to the 1500s, and is the birthplace of William Brewster, a leading figure in the Separatist movement, who fled from England to Holland and then to the United States.
The owners of the manor are now looking to sell the property to pay for their retirement, and have said they may be forced to sell it to housing developers if no historical organisations show an interest in buying it. However, Jacqueline LeMar, from North Carolina has stepped in to try to save the property. She has launched an online fundraiser to buy Scrooby Manor to "protect" its history, as she is a descendant of the Pilgrims. The first phase is to raise £200,000 for a down payment, and then a further £1.8m to complete the purchase.
Jacqueline, who is part of the General Society of Mayflower Descendants, says she has been fascinated by Scrooby Manor since visiting in 2022, and told BBC News that "Myself and other members of the society took a trip to Nottinghamshire to follow in the footsteps of our ancestors. The owners were kind enough to let us see the grounds and parts of the manor. It really is a jewel of a medieval home."
Julie Dunstan, whose father in-law bought the property in the 1960s, says she would love for the manor to be sold to someone who cares about its origins. "This manor is where the plans for the New World started. It is a really important place. Here in Nottinghamshire, this history has been forgotten - people only know us for Sherwood Forest and Robin Hood."
The Pilgrims formed one of the first English colonies in America and it is believed about 25 million Americans descend from the passengers onboard the Mayflower.
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