VISIT
Admission
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Historic Sotterley’s grounds are open!
The restrooms, offices, exhibits, and Visitors Center are closed, .
Please check our Status page for COVID-19 updates.
Historic Sotterley, Inc
301-373-2280
44300 Sotterley Lane, P.O. Box 67
Hollywood, MD 20636
Site Hours
Monday- Satuday: 10 am – 4pm
Sunday: 12pm – 4pm
Become a Member
Before You Visit
Historic Sotterley: A TIDEWATER LEGACY
Please take the time to watch this introductory video, explaining the recent history of Historic Sotterley.
Tours
Guided tours of the 1703 Manor House allow visitors to discover an intimate perspective and the material culture of past residents over three centuries of American history of those that owned, lived and worked in the house, enslaved or free. The tour is on the ground floor spaces and is approximately 45 – 60 minutes in length.
Do you have a group of 12 or more? Reserve a group tour experience.
For more information, please contact us.
*The 18thcentury Manor House doorways may not accommodate all wheelchairs or walkers in some rooms of the house. Please call in advance for full access details. Printed tours (English or Spanish) and audio tours (English) are available upon request.
Guided 1703 Manor House Tour
Group tours are available year-round for 12 or more with advanced reservations. Upon arrival, your party is greeted by Sotterley staff. Groups over twenty may be divided for the tour to ensure that everyone can experience all that Sotterley has to offer in a relaxed and intimate setting. At Sotterley, the touch is personal, no matter the size of your group! You may also choose by advance arrangement to add one of Sotterley’s unique Specialty Tours, and/or opt to let Sotterley cater lunch or light breakfast fare with your group on the riverside portico while enjoying Sotterley’s magnificent vistas. Breakfast is continental style and lunch consists of a selection of fresh-made sandwiches, salads and desserts.
Bus tours are welcome.
Group Discounts available.
Contact us for more information.
*We have covered or indoor accommodations in case of inclement weather.
* The 18thcentury Manor House doorways may not accommodate all wheelchairs or walkers in some rooms of the house. Please call in advance for full access details. Printed tours (English or Spanish) and audio tours (English) are available on request.
Group Tours
Available year-round for group tours of 12 or more.
Groups can choose a unique tour that fits their interest from our many offerings. Make the trip extra special by combining a specialty tour with your 1703 Manor House Group Tour!
For more information, contact us.
*When making your group tour reservations, ask what specialty tours may be available to add to your experience.
*Some specialty tours may be offered during the season as a Sotterley special event. Check Sotterley’s events to see what is coming up!
Specialty Tours
Educational Programming
Education is one of the most important aspects of Sotterley’s mission and touches almost everything that a visitor will encounter. Whether an exhibit, a tour, field trip, or event, the education of students and visitors about Sotterley’s history and culture takes place before, during and after a visit. Sotterley’s K-12 programs are Maryland State Department of Education approved and aligned with Maryland educational standards and teaching practices.
Field Trips
Our schools increasingly struggle to meet the comprehensive needs of students; each new generation faces an even more tenuous connection to knowledge. TODAY, a field trip to Sotterley is a “hands-on” day of discovery. TOMORROW our top priorities will be enhanced and expanded programs to reach more children and adult learners.”
Field Trips
- “Loyalist to Patriot”
- “To Live Enslaved”
- “Living on the Patuxent”
- “Slavery to Freedom”
- “Tidewater Plantation Life”
- “STEAM”
For inquiries about Sotterley’s history, the Descendants’ Project, Field Trips or educational partnerships, please contact: education@sotterley.org
Field Trips
Home School Day
Home school is meant for places like Sotterley. Hands-on, outside the classroom, and away from home activities allow students to learn while having fun. Admission fees apply.
Home School Day
Junior Docent Academy
Are you looking for something fun to do this summer that involves history and interacting with others? We have the perfect opportunity for you! Our Junior Docent Academy will enhance your communication skills while sharing our rich history and exquisite site with visitors. Upon successful completion, you will become Junior Docents and ambassadors of Historic Sotterley. Ages 8-18. Advance Registration Required.
Junior Docent Academy
Spring Break
A week of family fun with special programming to include trail walks, colonial games, environmental exploration and more. Admission fees apply.
Spring Break
Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math
Sotterley hosts STEAM education programs at its site, providing students with opportunities to learn concepts introduced in the classroom in a more exciting way, through sensory learning. Sotterley partners with the St. Mary’s County Public Schools STEAM Academy.
STEAM
Summer Programs
Guided family-friendly activities for selected summer days. Explore, paint, learn about seeds and planting, bugs, bees and butterflies and more! Admission fees apply.
Summer Programs
Events
Our Events
As one of Maryland’s premier cultural resources Sotterley is proud to serve as a gathering place for our community. Whether educational programming, free events, or one of our larger fundraisers, Sotterley is committed to providing a wonderful experience to all who visit. We are incredibly grateful to our generous supporters who make all that we do possible. Because of you Sotterley can continue to be the exceptional cultural and educational asset that it is for our community.
Buy Tickets Upcoming Events Events Calendar 
Exhibits
All exhibits can be experienced year-round on any day the site is open.
Land, Lives and Labor
The Land, Lives and Labor exhibit, located both inside and outside the Corn Crib, offers a unique view of life at Sotterley from the perspective of the workers, both enslaved and free. The exhibit gives voice to those who far too often had none. Their stories were heavily researched and include primary documents, oral histories and interactive hands-on features, as well as a display of historic tools and equipment used to work the grounds at Sotterley.
Land, Lives and Labor
1830's Slave Cabin
Sotterley’s slave cabin, a one-room dwelling with a loft, dating to circa 1830, vividly illustrates the lives of Sotterley’s enslaved. The Slave Cabin exhibit examines the culture, ingenuity, and resistance of the Cane family who resided in such a structure in the mid 19th century at Sotterley. Duck your head as you enter the low doorway and feel the dirt floor beneath your feet.
1830’s Slave Cabin
Saving History: The Urgency of Preservation
This exhibit informs our visitors why historic preservation is so important and features the story of “Resurrection Manor”, an early manor house located nearby. Despite its designation as a National Historic Landmark, it was demolished in 2002. The exhibit, incorporating artifacts from the original house, explores why historic sites are lost and what makes preservation so challenging.
Saving History: The Urgency of Preservation
19th Century School House
Compulsory education for children did not become law in Maryland until 1902. Until then, a child’s education was left to the discretion and resources of the parents. In the mid 1800’s Sotterley’s Briscoe family operated a boarding school for girls, housed in the north Gatehouse. Furnished as it would have been at that time, desks and benches, slates, and quills show how the students learned the 3 R’s.
19th Century School House
Maps & Trails
Weddings and Site Rentals
Host Your Next Event with Sotterley
Make your wedding memorable by holding it at our beautiful National Historic Landmark. Historic Sotterley is pleased to offer its grounds and unique outbuildings for your special day. Your future starts with our past.
Not just for weddings, Sotterley is available for your corporate events, meetings and reunions (hello, Sotterley Descendants!). We can accommodate a broad range of events to suit your needs. Let Sotterley be your beautiful backdrop and gracious host!
Museum Store
The Visitor Center and Museum Store are housed in the Knott Farmhouse and is your first stop when visiting Historic Sotterley. In addition to obtaining literature about the site and/or tickets to tour the Manor House and its grounds and exhibits, the Museum Store offers a wonderful selection of books of historical, regional and special interest, books for children, and books written by lecturers of our Speaker Series.
We also offer colonial toys, jewelry, local crafts, garden accents, wine accessories, and more.
Hours of Operation:
May 1 – October 31 st
Tuesday – Saturday: 10:00am – 4:00pm
Sunday: Noon – 4pm
