Norwood Spencer Sothoron (September 9, 1911 – February 4, 2005) was an American soldier and athlete. He attended the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

, where he earned All-American honors twice in

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensiv ...

and an honorable mention in football. Sothoron was inducted into the

National Lacrosse Hall of Fame The National Lacrosse Hall of Fame and Museum, is located in Sparks, Maryland at the USA Lacrosse headquarters. Prior to moving to its present location in 2016, the hall of fame and museum was located in Baltimore, Maryland, on the Homewood camp ...

in 1972.

Early life and college

He was born on September 9, 1911, in

Charlotte Hall, Maryland Charlotte Hall is a census-designated place (CDP) in Charles and St. Mary's counties, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,420 at the 2010 census. The Maryland Veterans Home for disabled veterans, including a U.S. Veterans Affairs clinic ...

, to parents Richard Horatio and Lillian Harrison Sothoron. Norwood Sothoron attended the Charlotte Hall Military Academy.Obituary: Norwood Spencer Sothoron
''St. Mary's Today'', February 4, 2005, retrieved February 4, 2009. In 1931, he enrolled at the

. While there, he earned

varsity letter A varsity letter (or monogram) is an award earned in the United States for excellence in school activities. A varsity letter signifies that its recipient was a qualified varsity team member, awarded after a certain standard was met. Description ...

s as a member of the

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

, football, and

teams. His senior year in 1934, he received the Senior Award as the most outstanding athlete in the class.Hall of Fame Bios: Sothoron, Norwood
US Lacrosse, retrieved February 4, 2009. As a football player, in 1934, Sothoron was also named an honorable mention All-American and All-

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly k ...

back. He also was named to every All-State and All-District of Columbia team published. In lacrosse, he was named a first-team All-American defenseman in both 1934 and 1935. He was elected the senior class president, junior class vice president, and president of Kappa Alpha. Sothoron was a member of Omicron Delta Kappa and the

Scabbard and Blade Scabbard and Blade (S&B) is a college military honor society founded at the University of Wisconsin in 1904. Although membership is open to Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) cadets and midshipmen of all military services, the society is mod ...

. Upon graduation in 1935, he received a commission as an officer in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

through the

Reserve Officer Training Corps The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC ( or )) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. Overview While ROTC graduate officers serve in all ...

(ROTC).

Military and civilian career

Sothoron spent five years on active duty, from 1941 to 1946. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, he served in the 110th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Group in the South Pacific Theater. After the war, he was assigned to a reserve officers school at

Fort Myer, Virginia Fort Myer is the previous name used for a U.S. Army post next to Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington County, Virginia, and across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C. Founded during the American Civil War as Fort Cass and Fort Whipple, ...

. His positions there included plans and training officer ( S3), assistant commandant, and commandant. In 1964, he retired from the Army Reserve having attained the rank of colonel. During that time, from 1947 to 1969, he also held the civilian position as the commandant of the Charlotte Hall Military Academy. In the early 1970s, he worked as a manager for Franklin Wholesale, Inc. in

Waldorf, Maryland Waldorf is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Charles County, Maryland, United States. Located south-southeast of Washington, D.C., Waldorf is part of the Southern Maryland region. It is an urban area, with a popul ...

. From 1974 to 1993, he served on the board of directors of the

Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative The Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) is an electric distribution cooperative which is headquartered in Hughesville, Maryland, United States. SMECO serves approximately 161,000 customers in Calvert, Charles, Prince George's, and ...

(SMECO).

Later life

He married Jane Spaulding Bennett Sothoron, with whom he had four children. Their eldest son, Norwood, Jr., likewise became an Army officer and was awarded the Silver Star in

Viet Nam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making it ...

. Their second son, John, also played lacrosse at

Towson University Towson University (TU or Towson) is a public university in Towson, Maryland. Founded in 1866 as Maryland's first training school for teachers, Towson University is a part of the University System of Maryland. Since its founding, the university h ...

. Norwood and Jane Sothoron eventually retired to

Lexington Park, Maryland Lexington Park is a census-designated place (CDP) in St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States, and the principal community of the Lexington Park, Maryland Micropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 11,626 at th2010 census History Nati ...

. He was a member of the

Lions Club The International Association of Lions Clubs, more commonly known as Lions Clubs International, is an international non-political service organization established originally in 1916 in Chicago, Illinois, by Melvin Jones. It is now headquartere ...

for over 40 years and served as president and deputy district governor. In 1972, Sothoron was elected to the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame. In 1983, he was inducted into the

University of Maryland Athletic Hall of Fame The University of Maryland Athletic Hall of Fame was established in 1982 by the M Club Foundation to honor student-athletes, coaches, and administrators who made significant contributions to athletics at the University of Maryland. The Hall of Fa ...

. Sothoron died in 2005 after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease.February 2005 News Stories
, ''St. Mary's Today'', February 2005, retrieved February 4, 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sothoron, Norwood People from St. Mary's County, Maryland Players of American football from Maryland Maryland Terrapins football players Maryland Terrapins men's lacrosse players Maryland Terrapins men's basketball players Maryland Terrapins baseball players American football fullbacks American lacrosse players United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army officers 1911 births 2005 deaths American men's basketball players