Collection Spotlight-Scrooby
The Scrooby Desk
The Scrooby desk, according to the Library's esteemed librarian emeritus, Hal Worthley, was used by the parish clerk in Scrooby, England, the town where Pilgrim Father William Brewster was the postmaster. Scrooby was where the infant "Pilgrims" held their secret and illegal meetings prior to moving to Amsterdam. From Amsterdam, they moved to Leiden and finally via the Mayflower, to America. The desk, minus its newer hinges, is thought to date back to these pre-colonial times of the 17th century.
A parish clerk would use a desk like this for his statistical and minute-keeping duties.
The Desk
The Plaque on the Desk
"Parish Clerk's Desk Scrooby, Eng. In use before the time of the Pilgrims, Obtained by Charles Carelton Coffin, 1888"