T h e B a r b e r F a m i l y
From Slavery, Through Segregation and the Civil Rights Movement
Four Generations in St. Mary's County
Like much of the South, St. Mary’s County experienced an economic decline following the abolition of slavery. For many decades after emancipation, the County remained a rural backwater with few opportunities for poor families, Black or White. Significant change as the civil rights movement spread across the nation. Living at Sotterley, the Barber family was isolated from some of the discrimination and segregation that other African American families experienced, only to encountered it beyond Sotterley’s borders. In their 2024 book with DAVID BROWN as co-author, DONALD BARBER chronicled the challenges his family faced as they lived fulfilling and dignified lives.
DONALD BARBER is the sixth of seven children born to Alice Ruth Somerville Barber and James Bernard Barber who were employed by Mabel Ingalls at Sotterley Plantation. Donald’s parents instilled him with a strong work ethic, working in Sotterley’s gardens until he left in the mid-1970’s. He was awarded a National Merit Scholarship enabling him to attend St. Mary’s College of Maryland where he earned a Bachelor Degree in Social Science. Following a thirty-year career in Human Services, he returned to Sotterley as a volunteer, serving as a Trustee, as well. Donald is retired and lives quietly in Hollywood with his wife, Rosa.
DAVID BROWN, a Boston, MA, native, served as a Foreign Service Officer in the State Department for over thirty years, mainly in Asia. On retiring, he spent twenty years as a researcher, administrator, and adjunct professor in the China Studies program at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAAIS) in Washington, DC. For two decades, he has volunteered as an interpreter and Trustee at Sotterley, researching and writing numerous books about Sotterley including its first history: Sotterley: Her People and Their Worlds. His biography of George Plater will be the subject of a forthcoming Historically Speaking program in 2026.
This will a first of a kind format for an Historical Society dinner with both Donald and David conversing from the podium and taking your questions and comments.
IMPORTANT: There are two types of reservations: General and Leonard Calvert Reservations. Please read the following carefully to ensure your successful registration.
1. When making your reservation for either General or Leonard Calvert, please select 1 in the "Number of People Who Will Attend" dropdown box below.
2. General Reservations: These are per person. When you come to the Activities screen, please indicate the number of people your reserving in the dropdown box, including yourself, .
3. Leonard Calvert Reservations: These reservations are per table. Entering 1 in the dropdown means that you have reserved one table for eight. You do not need to indicate the number of guests.
4. For both types of reservations, please list the first and last names of your guests when prompted.