The history of the estate in Zaborovka dates back to the distant past. In 1708, these lands passed to Count Platon Ivanovich Musin-Pushkin, a well-known statesman, senator, and ambassador in Paris and Copenhagen, as well as the chairman of the Commercial Collegium.

After him, the estate was owned by his son, Count Ivan Platonovich, and then by his brother Valentin Platonovich Musin-Pushkin, a participant in the Russo-Turkish War of 1768-1774 and the commander-in-chief in the Swedish campaign of 1788-1790. However, neither the father nor the son ever visited the estate.

In 1804, the lands were inherited by Vasily Valentinovich Musin-Pushkin, the son of a field marshal, who was close to the imperial court and actively participated in Masonic activities. From 1812, he often visited Zaborovka, lived in a small wooden house, and personally managed the estate's affairs. He also helped needy peasants and donated to the church in the village.

Major General and Prince Ivan Alexeyevich Gagarin, a landowner in the Nizhny Novgorod province and a friend of Musin-Pushkin from the Masonic lodge, met the count's daughter, Praskovya Vasilievna, in Zaborovka and married her. They had sons Nikolai and Ivan, as well as a daughter Praskovya.

Before his death in 1836, Musin-Pushkin bequeathed all his property, including the estate, to his wife, actress Semyonova. She sold it to the Gagarin family in 1837. The construction of a new estate complex began during Musin-Pushkin's lifetime, and Prince Gagarin actively participated in this process.

In the 1870s, the estate was expanded and rebuilt. A third floor with balcony galleries and columns appeared on the side of the pond, while the building remained two stories on the road side, resembling a luxurious steamboat. It has retained this appearance to this day.