On Location At Gainsborough Old Hall

The Old Hall, medieval manor house, must surely be the jewel in Gainsborough's crown.

Steeped in history, this small Trent side town has witnessed many famous people on their way to visit the Lord of the Manor and enter through it's ancient doors.

King Richard III, Henry VII, Catherine Parr - all have been lavishly entertained in the Great Hall with pomp and ceremony at the height of the Old Hall's fame.

Paneled Dining Room - Old Hall

In the early 1600's, and covertly, the town's Separatist Congregation secretly held their meeting there. (Many among its number went on to become known as The Pilgrim Fathers).

Later,  John Wesley preached within the Great Hall under the patronage of the last Lord Hickman .

The Great Hall, Gainsborough Old Hall.

George Elliot based her classic novel, Mill On The Floss, on the town and the river's famous bore.

Now, much of the first part of the novel, Mayflower Maid , takes place in this beautiful house.

All the locations  that we find Dorothy, the heroine in,  actually exist. You can pick up the  book and walk wherever Dorothy leads.

The Hickman bed

Solar

...The Gainsborough Old Hall Ghost? 

In fact, there have been sightings of at least several different ghosts at the Old Hall over the years.

A mysterious Grey Lady had for many years  had been regularly spotted at the tower end of the corridor in the East Wing and disappearing into a solid wall. Then, during renovations , part of the corridor wall was stripped back to the timbers only to reveal a Tudor door which had long since been sealed up and hidden by plasterwork exactly where the Grey Lady used to disappear....

Meanwhile , in the west range ( where the gift shop is now housed) the presence of a young boy has been reported. Research carried out by the Friend's Paul Howitt-Cowan  has uncovered a very sad story attached to a child who died there in Victorian times.

The Grey Lady - The Ghost Of Gainsborough Old Hall

(click to enlarge)