Historian's plan to save 'forgotten' Pilgrim manor

A historian says she is attempting to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds to try to save a piece of "forgotten" Pilgrim history from developers.

Scrooby Manor in Nottinghamshire is the birthplace of two of the Pilgrim Fathers, who fled England in the 1600s and sailed to America on the Mayflower.

The owners of the manor are now looking to sell the site 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.

Jacqueline LeMar, from North Carolina, has started an online fundraiser to buy the manor to "protect" its history, as she is a descendant of the Pilgrims.

Scrooby Manor dates back to the 1500s, and is the birthplace of William Brewster, a key figure in the Separatist movement, who fled from England to Holland and then to the United States.

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.

Jacqueline, who is part of the General Society of Mayflower Descendants, says she has been fascinated by Scrooby Manor since visiting in 2022.

"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."

Jacqueline was shocked to find out the site was being sold.

"The owners let our society know that it was going up for sale, but unfortunately, as a society, we didn't have the funds to purchase it," she says.

"I just thought to myself - I have the skills to take this on. I'd love to have a museum to showcase its history - there could even be other pieces of history on the property that we haven't discovered."

The property is being sold for about £2m and Jaqueline is attempting to raise £200,000 as a down payment on the property.

She says she has currently raised about $6,000 (£4,557) after starting the fundraiser a week ago.

"I believe we could be successful, and we could teach people from the local community and from across the world about the manor's history," she adds.

The manor currently belongs to the Dunstan family, who bought it from the Church of England in the 1960s.

Julie Dunstan, whose father in-law bought the property, 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.

"I don't blame them, as this has been our family home, we've never advertised it to the public or turned it into a museum," she says.

The 63-year-old added that her family had allowed the Mayflower society to visit, but the site was not currently used for educational purposes.

"I want future generations to enjoy the history of this building, and we are willing to wait some time to see if the Americans can raise enough money to buy it.

"But, if we don't receive the interest, we'll have no choice but to sell it elsewhere," she says.

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