Notable residents have included Mary Fitton, perhaps the "Dark Lady" of Shakespeare's sonnets, and Samuel "Maggoty" Johnson, a playwright described as the last professional jester in England, whose grave is nearby in Maggoty Wood, a small National Trust woodland.

During the summer months a series of concerts and other entertainment is arranged in an open-air theatre near the hall.

Sir Edward III was the father of Mary Fitton, a maid of honour to Queen Elizabeth and a candidate for the "Dark Lady" of Shakespeare's sonnets.

[2] Following the death of Sir Edward Fitton, 2nd Baronet in 1643,[3] the estate passed to Charles Gerard, later the first Earl of Macclesfield.

[1] Demolition of parts of the house took place in about 1700, and it is thought by de Figueiredo and Treuherz that the west range was removed, possibly including the gatehouse.

Richards collected items from historic buildings that were being demolished in the 1960s, either incorporating them into the house or displaying them in the grounds.

[4] Gawsworth Old Hall is a timber-framed house in the Cheshire black-and-white tradition,[5] roofed in Kerridge sandstone.

De Figueiredo and Treuherz are of the opinion that this was originally a larger, separate structure, probably a barn, and incorporated into the main building when the east range was built.

The special feature of this room is a canted bay window on the north side, extending upwards for three storeys.

The only dated item in the building is the Fitton coat of arms on the north front, which was carved by Richard Rany in 1570.

It contains the coat of arms of the Richards family and items of weaponry, including a decorative suit of armour dating from the 19th century and moved here from Scarisbrick Hall.

The hall contains items of antique furniture, and paintings by David Wilkie, J. M. W. Turner and John Constable.

The area around the staircase contains a Waterford glass chandelier dating from about 1780, and a portrait of the first Earl of Harrington by Allan Ramsay.

Alongside the chapel is an ambulatory or baptistry which contains a font and items of stained glass, made by Morris & Co. and designed by Edward Burne-Jones.

The south door contains fragments of ancient glass from Plas Newydd in Llangollen that were originally in a medieval church.

Its contents include a 16th-century refectory table, an oak escritoire from about 1650, and items of Wedgwood majolica ware made in about 1830.

This room has retained a frieze dating from the early 16th century, including carvings of Tudor roses, flowers and birds.

This contains a painting of Gawsworth Rectory by Charles Tattershall Dodd, and a complete set of a dinner service by Minton, comprising 120 pieces.

It contains a four-poster bed from the era of William and Mary and a portrait by Zuccaro of members of the Fitton family, which was formerly in Brereton Hall.

As well as the billiard table, the room contains a marble sculpture of Echo by Alfred Gatley and a bust of John Milton.

[19] The Cheshire historian George Ormerod, writing in 1819, considered that this area contained a tilting ground for jousting.

[19] Limited excavation work carried out in 1989–90 discovered, inter alia, a filled-in canal running north–south down the centre of the garden.

[22] The 17th-century gatehouse is constructed in brick with ashlar dressings and a stone slate roof, in two storeys and three bays.

[25] In nearby woodland are the grave and memorial to Samuel "Maggoty" Johnson,[26] a playwright said to have been the last professional jester in England,[6] who lived in the hall and died in 1773 aged 82.

[32] During the summer months plays, concerts and other entertainments take place in the open-air theatre close to the hall.