Speaker Series Event: FLO STONE

“Highlights from the 2010 Environmental Film Festival”
Friday, April 30, 2010 7:00 p.m. in the Barn
at Sotterley Plantation

Sotterley Plantation is proud to partner with The Boeing Company in presenting Ms. Flo Stone, President and Founder of the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital. She will highlight the 13 day program of the 2010 Festival with a special collection of film clips, a celebration of the diversity of outstanding environmental films. Clips to be featured at Sotterley will include selections from:

The Music Tree (a Festival award winner for artistry in film); Portrait films of distinguished writers of fiction and non-fiction (Peter Mattheissen and Frederic Back); A look at the remarkable Olympic Sculpture Garden in Seattle; Pearl Fryer’s topiary garden in Bishopville, South Carolina; A prize winning film about an orangutan - victim of forest destruction in Indonesia; Discussions with a family showing how they produce over 6,000 lbs. of homegrown organic crops on less than a quarter of an acre; Megamall explores the origins of the massive Palisades Center Mall built just north of Manhattan; Araya, a brilliant 1959 black & white film about the life of salt miners in Venezuela, winner of the International Prize at Cannes.

Stone’s extensive experience in film includes: public programs at the American Museum of Natural History, Founder of the Margaret Mead Film Festival, Film Chair for the Smithsonian’s Biodiversity Symposium, establishment of the Earthwatch Film Awards at the National Geographic, and preparation of filmographies for the Ocean exhibit at the Smithsonian and for the Festival of Indonesia.

Because of the generous grant and continued support from The Boeing Company, Sotterley Plantation is able to offer this important community outreach, fulfilling its mission of serving as an educational resource and cultural venue while it seeks to preserve, interpret and research the plantation’s diverse cultures and environments through its history.

FREE to the public. Call for Reservations: 301-373-2280.

Who doesn't like a Petting Zoo?

Let’s Go Fly a Kite! and more
The Second Annual Garden Fair
at Sotterley Plantation
April 17th & 18th, 2010
10 am – 4 pm

Announcing NEW additions to The Second Annual Garden Fair at Sotterley Plantation, which will take place the weekend of April 17th and 18th, 2010 from 10am – 4pm!

Our Keynote Speaker is Janet Draper, Horticulturist of the Mary Livingston Ripley Garden at the Smithsonian Institution. Her presentation, “The Mary Livingston Ripley Garden: Evolution of a Space” will cover all that has been accomplished at this magnificent site from the 1890’s to present day.

Surely to please children of all ages is the addition of a Petting Zoo – and who doesn’t like a petting zoo? And a few steps away, there will be an incredible Antique Toy Display complete with John Deere trains, trucks, and tractors from year’s past. With the right amount of wind, kites will soar above the field!

The entire site will be a flurry of activity: Presentations on everything from Orchid Growing to Oyster Ranching by SMCM and UMD Professors, Environmental Experts, and Master Gardeners. Pick up a mallet and play croquet on the Croquet Lawn. Shop the booths abundant with beautiful hand-crafted wares by local Artisans. Check out the Going Green! and eco-friendly exhibits. Take a tour through the magnificent Colonial Revival Gardens. Children are welcome to craft birdhouses, birdfeeders, and paper flowers. Enjoy lunch in the garden. Pick up some lovely additions for your garden at the Sotterley Garden Guild plant sale.

Admission is $7 for one day; $10 for a two day pass (Sotterley Members free the second day); Children under 12 FREE.

Hot Off the Presses!

Sotterley ~ Her People and Their Worlds


When right motives and a deep connection come together, good things happen. There are many who love Sotterley Plantation, and at long last a book has been written about Sotterley, honoring an integral part of her rich history–her people. “This is not a book about a building or a farm – it’s about the people who lived here,” stated Dave Brown, author of Sotterley ~ Her People and Their Worlds.

With retirement from his long-standing career with U.S. State Department at the beginning of the new millennium, Dave and his wife Erna adopted Southern Maryland as their second home and were introduced to Sotterley Plantation. The connection was immediate, and they dove into volunteer work. For the past decade, they have dedicated time, resources and energy to this National Historic Landmark and its mission.

Brown’s impressive work experience, combined with his passion for Sotterley’s history as an Interpreter and member of the Education Committee’s Oral History Project, motivated him to write the stories of some 50 people who lived and worked at Sotterley over 300 years. Not only did he commit himself to countless hours of research, pouring over documentation and conducting interviews, and finally compiling collected data into the final book, but Dave and Erna are donating all of the proceeds to Sotterley Plantation. “I love the place. I want to see Sotterley succeed … to survive for future generations,” said Brown.

The challenges of writing this historical perspective did not deter him from sticking to his intention of completing this project in 2010, the 50th anniversary of Mabel Ingalls’s establishment of the Sotterley Mansion Foundation. Piecing together limited primary sources including letters and obituaries, Brown then focused on relating the lives of Sotterley’s people to what was going on around them. “For instance, if you think about it, it is extraordinary how in two generations, African-American families living at Sotterley went from poverty to becoming educated professionals within our society,” said Brown.

In the 18 months it took for Brown to write the book and collect the photos, he humbly gives much credit to his editor at the Chesapeake Book Company, Robert Cottom, who “took this on as a public service. Half was my effort, the other half, his.” Mr. Cottom will be present for the book launch on April 9th.

Sotterley ~ Her People and Their Worlds is available for purchase: $15 for Sotterley Members, $17 for Non-Members. To order, please contact: officemanager@sotterley.org or call 301-373-2280. Also available through Amazon.

David Brown is an adjunct professor in Chinese and Asian studies at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University and former Associate Director. He served for over 30 years as a Foreign Service Officer in the U.S. State Department, his diplomatic career focused on Asia. He served as Deputy Consul General in Hong Kong, Economic Counselor in Beijing and Director of the State Department’s offices responsible for Taiwanese, Korean and Southeast Asian affairs. After leaving government, he worked as Senior Associate at the Asia Pacific Policy Center, a non-profit institution in Washington, as a writer, speaker and consultant on a wide variety of Asian issues. He served as the Chair of the East Asian Area Studies course at the State Department’s Foreign Service Institute. He has a degree in East Asian Studies from Princeton University and is proficient in Chinese and Norwegian. He is a member of the Board of the American Institute in Taiwan and has published articles on Asia, China, American Foreign Policy and colonial Maryland history in a variety of publications. He is a trustee of Historic Sotterley, Inc. He is married to Erna Paulsboe Brown. He has three children: David Gordon, Christine and Erik.

Check us out!

Riverside WineFest at Sotterley 2009 - HUGE Success!

View the article from the National Trust Historic Sites Blog!

Save America's Treasures

Save America's Treasures

And Sotterley Plantation is one of them!

CANCELLATION !!!

It is with tremendous disappointment that we must cancel this Saturday's event: "FREE at Last! ~ Black History Celebration!" Due to icy and snowy conditions here on-site, we are concerned for the safety of all. It is our hope to reschedule this important event - sooner rather than later. Once we are able to reschedule all the amazing people involved, a date will be announced.

EVENT POSTPONED!

"FREE at Last ~ Black History Celebration!"

NEW DATE: Saturday, February 20th, 10 am - 4 pm

For more information: 301-373-2280 or www.sotterley.org