Sotterley: Her People and Their Worlds Three Hundred Years of a Maryland Plantation

by Brown, David G.

• ISBN13: 9780982304914
• ISBN10: 0982304919
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-04-15
• Publisher: Chesapeake Book Company

Summary

The story of Sotterley plantation in St. Mary's County began shortly after the founding of Maryland and continued over three centuries that saw it rise from humble beginnings, prosper in the age of tobacco and slavery, endure depression, and survive three wars, only to stumble toward ruin until a generous fate brought restoration and renewed relevance for our time. Some who resided there were socially prominent, though most were not. Some were free, others enslaved. Some were white, more were black. Yet they were men and women whose stories have much to tell us about the history of southern Maryland and a maturing Chesapeake society.

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments	p. IX
Past as Prelude	p. 1
Founding a Tidewater Tobacco Plantation	p. 3
Prosperity and Expansion	p. 9
Success in Colonial Maryland	p. 15
A Revolutionary Patriot	p. 21
Elizabeth Rousby Plater	p. 27
Master Craftsman	p. 31
An Eighteenth-Century Slave Community	p. 35
Maryland Statesman	p. 39
The New Capital	p. 43
The War of 1812 and the End of the Plater Era	p. 47
A Southern Farmer	p. 51
The Civil War	p. 57
The Kane Family	p. 63
Rescued from Ruin	p. 69
Colonial Revival	p. 75
Trustworthy Managers	p. 87
Tenants and Workers	p. 93
Creating a Foundation for the Future	p. 101
Sotterley Today	p. 110
Further Reading	p. 112
Index	p. 113
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