Saturday, October 2, 2010

Holder, David Dawson

As told by my father, Tom Adams Holder, over the years of my life.
Von Hoelder left German around 1792 for political reasons.  He married a red haired Irish woman and they had seven sons.  He dropped the Von from his name and changed Hoelder to Holder.  They settled in Alabama.David Dawson Holder (nicknamed Dr. D Holder) was a grandson of Von Hoelder.  Dr. D. was an ambulance driver for the Confederacy during the Civil War. Three doctors were shot off the seat beside him - the last one was hit in the neck with a canon ball and his head rolled off onto Dr. D's lap and into the bottom of the wagon.  David Dawson Holder married a girl who was one-half Cherokee Indian. They had five children.  John, Jim, Dossie and Edgar and Cora. John was married and had a two year old child when Edgar was born in 1871.  They moved to Lamar county in East Texas.  Dr. D died a natural death in 1915 at the age of 84.
Edgar left home when he was 6 and went to work in North Texas.  He married Stella Adams in 1898 when he was 27 and she was 18.  They had two girls die in infancy but they raised five children.  Trudie Lee, born 5 Feb 1901, Tom Adams, born 20 Feb 1908, Oscar born 10 July 1910 A.C. born 4 Sept 1914 and Alfred Wildon (Billy) born 31 May 1917.
In 1913, Edgar and Stella set out in a covered wagon from Lockney, Texas to Elida, New Mexico.  They had three children, two wagons and 250 head of cattle.  Perry Adams (Stella's brother) and Grady Westbrook (a boy hired to help herd the cattle) war with them.  They lived in a half dugout till they got a house built.


Parents & Children

Parents & Siblings

Spouse & Children

Map of Westward Journey ending in Texas

History of Holder, Texas


1860 Census


1870 Census


1880 Census


1900 Census


1910 Census



Second Marriage to Ellen Virginia Martin Slough Holder

Ellen Virginia Martin Slough Holder Death Certificate 
Dau Cara Death Record

Dau Cara Death Record

Son Charles Death Record

Son Thomas Death Record

2 comments:

  1. David Dawson Holder was my great great grandfather. My Uncle, Tex Holder Sumrall looked very much like D. D. Holder, complete with the beard in his later years. Lula Holder was my grandmother. I visit this page quite often looking at these old photos. Thank you again for posting them

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  2. Is this Laura's blog? The pictures are many of the same that she and my dad passed back and forth before he died. Laura, I would love it if you could get in touch if this is you.
    --A. Darwin Holder, Jr. (great-great grandson of Dawson, great grandson of James Willis, grandson of Marion, son of Darwin Sr.; second-cousin to that n'er do well Kevin B ;-))

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