After Richard Oliver Gascoigne's death in 1842, Lotherton was inherited by his unmarried daughters, Elizabeth and Mary Isabella.

[1] Richard Trench Gascoigne took up ownership of the house in 1893 following the death of his aunt Elizabeth who had married Lord Ashtown.

There is a large expanse of grassland in front of the bird garden, typically used during the summer months for ball games and picnics.

[15] On Elizabeth's death in 1893, Lotherton was inherited by her nephew, Colonel Fredrick Richard Thomas Trench Gascoigne who was a noted soldier and traveller.

With no heir left to inherit Lotherton, Sir Alvary presented the hall to the City of Leeds in 1968 as a gift to be open to the public.

Colonel Gascoigne volunteered as an ambulance driver on the western front and their son, Alvary, served in the army.

[24] Their support in the war effort was appreciated by the local community and the St Johns Ambulance Service and in 1918, Mrs Gascoigne was awarded a CBE.

[1] The Gascoigne gift, less than a third of the collection, was given in stages between 1955 and 1979 and comprises paintings, sculpture, furniture, silver, jewelry, porcelain, prints, drawings and textiles.

[31] Lotherton Hall also houses work by Mark Senior (1862–1927)[32] (a member of the Staithes Group), Philip Wilson Steer (1860–1942)[33] and Edward Atkinson Hornel (1864–1933)[34] Notable furniture in the collection includes: Neo-Gothic designs by Augustus (A.W.N.)

Red, black and gold painted oak frame supporting top of marble inlay (pietra dura).

[37] Neo-Gothic oak wardrobe designed by Collier & Plucknett and decorated with allegorical paintings of the seasons and the winds by J. Moir Smith.

[38] Art nouveau high-backed chair designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh (1868–1928)[39][40] Arts and Crafts and Aesthetic Movement furniture designed by Ernest Gimson (1864–1919), C. F. A. Voysey (1857–1941), Edward William Godwin (1833–86), Gordon Russell (1892–1980), Morris & Co., Philip Webb (1831–1915), Frank Brangwyn (1867–1956) and Jennens & Bettridge (specialists in papier-mâché)[39] Georgian furniture by Gillows of Lancaster, including a dining table commissioned by Richard Oliver Gascoigne for Parlington Hall, soon after he inherited the Gascoigne estate in 1810.

A large silver cup by Robert Salmon is dated 1779 and commemorates Soothsayer and Jerry, two of the most successful horses owned by Sir Thomas Gascoigne, 8th Baronet, whose stables were at Parlington Hall.

The most accomplished miniature is a half-length portrait of Catherine, the elder daughter of Silver Oliver (Gascoigne), by Richard Cosway (1742–1821).

An important name in English miniature portraiture, Cosway was appointed Painter to the Prince of Wales (later George IV) in 1785 (the only time that this title was awarded)[44] The Gascoigne gift (1968) and the Frank Savery bequest (1966) include collections of Chinese ceramics.

The Tang dynasty (AD 618–906) is represented, including grave offerings in the form of animals, such as a colourfully glazed camel and a naturalistic horse.

[45] Song dynasty porcelain (10th–13th century AD) includes a water sprinkler decorated with animal heads for use in a Buddhist temple and a water dropper in the form of a duck (part of a scribe’s ink-set)[45] The Ming dynasty (AD 1368–1644) is represented by a seated female figure in green and yellow glazed stoneware (perhaps an ancestor or goddess for use in a temple), a wine jar with the painted scene of a scholar in a garden and a bowl with a finely painted bird decoration.

[45] Painted porcelain produced for European export (famille verte) during the Qing dynasty (Kangxi period AD 1662–1722) includes a vase with an elaborate narrative scene of mounted warrior, men and women in a garden.

This represents a fraction of the original, with the dinner service likely to have featured at least 100 meat plates and 50 soup plates (a total of only 29 plates survive)[46] Other significant ceramic designers and manufacturers displayed include William de Morgan,[47] Burmantofts Pottery[48] and Leeds Pottery[49] Lotherton Hall houses a small collection of modern craft studio pottery, including works by significant potters such as Alison Britton, Michael Cardew, Michael Casson, Joanna Constantinidis, Hans Coper, Elizabeth Fritsch, T. S. Haile, Bernard Leach, Janet Leach, Lucy Rie and Sutton Taylor.

[25][23] During the First World War, it was restored by Colonel and Mrs Gascoigne to house wounded soldiers and as a place of worship.

The festive event included a twelve days of Christmas walk around the woods and garden, an elf village with Santa's Grotto.

[53] Lotherton Hall Archive, uncatalogued document, produced by Thomas Herbert Prater, Agent for Colonel FRTT Gascoigne, 4 January 1922