Middle Passage Ceremony & Marker Placement
Historic Sotterley Plantation will hold a ceremony on Saturday, November 1, 2014 at 10:00 a.m.
to place a marker remembering those who perished during the Middle
Passage. On this special day, we will also celebrate the 150th
anniversary of Emancipation in Maryland. The public is invited to attend
this ceremony to remember and honor ancestors.
Sotterley
Plantation is part of the Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers
Project, a non-profit organization that is helping to discover and
recognize middle passage sites. Sotterley served as a trans-Atlantic
arrival site in the early 18th century. James Bowles, owner of the then
2,000 acre plantation, was an agent of the Royal African Company. Bowles
ordered slaves to be bought along the Gold and Windward Coasts of
Africa and shipped to his plantation on the Patuxent River.
On November 1, 1864, slavery was finally abolished in Maryland. Lincoln's Emancipation
Proclamation did not apply to those in bondage in Maryland, a
slave-holding Union state. Emancipation was accomplished by the Maryland
State Constitution of 1864, not popular with a large portion of the
voting public. But with the final votes of Maryland's Union soldiers,
the state constitution was ratified and 165 years of slavery at
Sotterley Plantation came to an end.
Please
join us at Sotterley on Saturday, November 1, 2014 to remember and
celebrate ancestors who perished and those that endured to seek their
freedom.
The Unveiling of Dave Brown's
NEW Sotterley Book
Three years after the publication of his first book entitled,
Sotterley: Her People and Their Worlds, Sotterley Trustee Dave Brown
will soon unveil his second book, George Plater of Sotterley with the
companion book The Letters of George Plater. On Friday, November
7th at 6:30 p.m., the public is invited to attend a Meet the Author and
Book Signing event in the Sotterley Warehouse. Once again,
Brown is generously contributing all proceeds to benefit Sotterley. This
biography will only be available for purchase at Sotterley's Museum
Shop and through the Sotterley website: www.sotterley.org.
Fleshing
out a fair assessment of George Plater's personal character and
significant political accomplishments was Brown's motivation. With
little information available about the sixth Governor of Maryland in the
Sotterley archives, Brown had his work cut out for him as he began a
three year journey of research to breathe some life into a largely
under-studied and under-appreciated Maryland Patriot, who was the owner
of Sotterley Plantation from 1755 to 1792.
George Plater of Sotterley - Price: $17.00
www.sotterley.org
The Letters of George Plater
Available online free of charge at www.msa.maryland.gov
Sotterley’s
Unveils New Signage
and
Extends Season!
Hollywood
– Each year as the end of October
approaches, we begin preparing for the end of the guided tour season and the
closing of our Visitor Center. This year, however, we are pleased to announce
that our Visitor Center will remain open every weekend through Saturday,
December 20, 2014 (with the exception of Thanksgiving weekend), and
this will enhance the experience of all visitors coming to Sotterley.
Once
checked in at the Visitor Center, guests will be invited to view our
introductory film and shop for unique gifts at the Sotterley Museum Shop. They
can also take our fascinating Self-Guided Audio Tour, hike the over six miles
of Nature Trails, stroll the Colonial Revival Gardens, and check out the NEW
exhibit panels displayed throughout the grounds while being guided by our new
site brochure.
Sixteen
panels have been installed on site to engage, inform, and direct viewers
through our rich history, telling the stories of the people who lived and
worked at Sotterley over three centuries. The panels combine text and images
that bring to life the experiences of owners, servants, workers and members of
the enslaved community. Many panels have interactive components designed
especially for children, in which a question is posed, and part of the panel
moves or changes to reveal the answer. Some panels also feature textured objects
that help visitors learn about crops, textiles, and materials and equipment
used during Sotterley’s many years as a working farm.
Sheila
Gibbons Hiebert of Communication Research Associates, Inc. in Colton’s Point,
researched the historical content and wrote the text that appears on the panels
and worked on our new brochure. She worked closely with Sotterley Education
Director Jeanne Pirtle, an impeccable source of Sotterley history, who chose
the images for the panels, and with St. Mary’s College Professor Emerita
Merideth Taylor, chair of Sotterley’s Interpretation Committee. The signs were fabricated by exhibits
specialist Dennis Kund. The signage project was funded in part by a grant from
the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority.
“The
new site exhibits have enhanced the Sotterley experience and we wanted to give
the public more opportunities to come and be re-introduced to the site,” stated
Nancy Easterling, Executive Director of Historic Sotterley, Inc. “Our dedicated
volunteers are also making it possible for us to extend the season by their
willingness to man the Visitor Center every weekend – and we couldn’t be more
grateful!”
November 1 ~ December 20, 2014
Saturday Hours: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm Sunday Hours: 11:45 am - 4 pm
_________________________________________________________
Looking Ahead to December!
Sotterley Christmas Traditions by Candlelight
December 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 20
Beginning at 6:30 p.m.
&
Family Plantation Christmas
December 13
10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Pay $5 at the gate; children 2 & under FREE.
Breakfast with Santa:
For complete details on our events, please visit:
