The preservation of Priory Cottages in Steventon was in great part the result of the activities of the remarkable band of conservationists known as Ferguson’s Gang.

This group of ‘desperadoes’, as James Lees-Milne, historian of the National Trust, described them, mostly consisting of well-educated young women, were established in the 1920s with the aim of frustrating the relentless progress of building development in rural England, which often meant the destruction of ancient buildings, by raising money to buy vulnerable properties and present them to the National Trust.

They operated anonymously, using Dickensian nicknames such as Bill Stickers, Shot Biddy, Sister Agatha, the Bloody Bishop and the Artichoke to conceal their true identities and using picturesque gangster-like language in their communications with the outside world, while their practice of turning up at the National Trust offices, unannounced and elaborately disguised, to hand over large sums in bank notes and coins (on one occasion concealed in a sinister imitation pineapple) attracted wide publicity.

Their first venture was the rescue of Shalford Mill, near Guildford, from the threat of demolition in 1927 and the Mill later became their headquarters. Priory Cottages came on the market in 1938 in a dilapidated condition and the Gang raised a total of £1,553 to enable the National Trust to buy and restore them. (Click here for information on the cottages)

This was their last major operation before the outbreak of the Second World War led to the suspension of their activities. It is thought the Gang raised about £4,500 up to 1939, a considerable sum in those pre-war years and the wide-spread press interest in their activities had a notable effect in raising public awareness of the cause of conservation in general and the National Trust in particular.

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