HOLLYWOOD, Md. — The Board of Trustees of Historic Sotterley announced Tuesday that Dr. Scott Gray, Ed.D., has been selected as the site’s new executive director, succeeding Nancy Easterling who retired after announcing her departure in May.
Gray officially assumed the role overseeing day-to-day operations of the National Historic Landmark, including its 18th-century plantation house, outbuildings, interpretive programs, and approximately 90 acres of farmland, gardens, and open space along the Patuxent River in St. Mary’s County.
A 30-year veteran of museum and nonprofit leadership, Gray most recently served as chief executive officer of the Patuxent River Naval Air Museum at Naval Air Station Patuxent River. During his tenure there, he secured new revenue sources for aircraft restoration projects, launched a digital preservation initiative for aviation artifacts, and broadened community programming.
Gray also teaches Museum Studies and Museum Management in the Department of Anthropology at St. Mary’s College of Maryland in St. Mary’s City. Long active with Historic Sotterley as a supporter and collaborator, he is expected to build on recent growth in visitor experiences and educational offerings focused on the site’s complex history.
“I am more than honored to have been selected to become the next executive director of Historic Sotterley,” Gray said in a prepared statement. “It is professionally gratifying to be a part of one of the most important historic sites. But it is also of personal importance to me as we work for greater learning and understanding.”
The leadership transition comes at a pivotal moment for the 320-year-old property, one of the oldest continuously operating plantations in Maryland and the only remaining Tidewater plantation open to the public. Designated a National Historic Landmark in 2000, Sotterley was added in 2021 to the UNESCO Slave Route Project as a Site of Memory associated with the Routes of Enslaved Peoples. It is also recognized by the Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project for its documented role in the arrival of enslaved Africans beginning in the early 1700s.
Under Easterling’s 14-year leadership, the site expanded interpretation of enslavement, including the restoration of the 1830s enslaved people’s cabin and development of the “Descendants Project,” which partners with families whose ancestors were enslaved at Sotterley. Recent capital improvements include a new welcome center completed in 2022 and ongoing conservation of the manor house and grounds.
Gray’s appointment followed a national search conducted by the board’s transition committee. Trustees cited his track record in fundraising, collections care, and community engagement as key factors in the selection.
Located at 44300 Sotterley Lane near Hollywood, the site attracts thousands of visitors annually for tours, school programs, special events, and seasonal activities such as the Speakers Bureau series and Riverside WineFest at Sotterley. Operating hours are Tuesday through Sunday from May through October, with limited winter access by appointment.
The property remains an active partner in regional heritage tourism initiatives, including the Southern Maryland Heritage Area and the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail.
Board officials said Gray will focus initially on staff development, grant opportunities, and continued enhancement of programs that address both colonial prosperity and the legacy of slavery in Maryland.
Historic Sotterley, originally granted as a 2,000-acre tract in 1703 and known successively as Sotterley Plantation and Resurrection Manor, preserves structures dating from 1717 onward. Its landscape features one of the region’s finest examples of early 18th-century formal gardens and a rare surviving slave cabin from the antebellum period.
The nonprofit organization relies on admission fees, memberships, donations, and grants for roughly 70 percent of its operating budget, with the remainder covered by event revenue and retail sales.
Gray holds a doctorate in education and has presented at national conferences on museum ethics, digital heritage, and interpreting difficult histories.
