Hollywood in St. Mary's County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
War Hits Home
Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail
| | National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior | |
Photographed by Allen C. Browne, January 6, 2013
1. War Hits Home Marker
Sotterley and other nearby plantations paid a heavy price in the War of 1812. British blockades impeded trade of their principal cash crop -- tobacco -- and enemy raids plundered the region.
In June 1814 British forces landed near Sotterley, scattering some 300 American militia camped here. After burning a house and a warehouse full of tobacco, the British left with 48 of Sotterley's slaves.
"The people on either side of the Patuxent are in the greatest alarm and consternation... those that remained at home all their slaves have left them and come to us..." -- British Captain Joseph Nourse to Rear Admiral George Cockburn, July 23, 1814.
Call to Freedom
The British enticed slaves to leave the plantations -- a tactic to acquire local knowledge and cripple the economy. roughly 4,000 enslaved men, women and children escaped to the British. Many were trained for the military. Four Sotterley slave who fled in June 1813 returned to help others escape.
Erected 2012 by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War of 1812. In addition, it is included in the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail series list. A significant historical month for this entry is June 1814.
Location.
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Regionally, this marker is in Southern Maryland. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Upper South, in the Mid-Atlantic, in the Tidewater, and in the Chesapeake Bay Region. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies and also the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Sotterley's Slave Cabin (within shouting distance of this marker); Food and Culinary Traditions at Sotterley (within shouting distance of this marker); Remembering Ancestors at the Sotterley Plantation (within shouting distance of this marker); Slavery at Sotterley (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Slavery at Sotterley (within shouting distance of this marker); Visitors and Correspondents (within shouting distance of this marker); Mabel Satterlee Ingalls (within shouting distance of this marker); George Plater III (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hollywood.
Another marker is no longer nearby. Sotterley's Remaining Slave Cabin (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it).
Photographed by Allen C. Browne, January 6, 2013
2. War Hits Home Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on April 13, 2026. It was originally submitted on January 14, 2013, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. This page has been viewed 782 times since then and 25 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on January 14, 2013, by Allen C. Browne of Silver Spring, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
