Michael Holland

Early Hollands
The Holland name was rather wide-spread in early Virginia records. William Holland, an adventurer of the Virginia Colony in 1620, testified in James City (Jamestown) in 1624. The last mention of him was in York County in 1646. It is not known if he married and had a family. Gabriel Holland left England in 1620 and was in Virginia by 1621. He was a member of the House of Burgess in James City in 1623 and in Henrico County in 1624. The last record of him was in Charles City County in 1655. In 1624, Gabriel Holland's wife was Mary, while in 1625, his wife was Rebecca. A Thomas Holland was killed by Indians in 1622. His name appeared in the records of Isle of Wright County and Henrico County. A John Holland "resident of New England" was deceased by 1652. Payment was ordered of his estate in Northampton County in that year. A Francis Holland was named in the records of York County in 1658 (above from Biographical Dictionary). Henry Holland was a headright for Mr. William Stone when he patented 1800 acres in Northampton County on 4 June 1635 (Nugent, Vol. I, p. 28).A Robert "Hollom" was granted 1000 acres in Henrico County on 2 June 1636. One of his headrights was an Edward Holland (Nugent, Vol. I, p. 41).
The first Virginia will was that of Daniel Holland of Northumberland County in 1672. He named his wife as Joyce, a daughter Elizabeth and no others (Maryland Calendar of Wills, Vol. I, p. 76). Since this will was recorded in Maryland records (also in Virginia), Daniel likely owned land in Maryland. Apparently he had no sons. Marmeduck Holland died intestate in Norfolk County in 1676 (Va. Wills & Adm., 1632-1800, p. 213). A William Holland died testate in Northampton County in 1685 (Northampton Orders, Wills XV, p. 118). His nuncupative will gives no evidence of children. However, a John Holland died intestate in 1724, with a wife Martha, who declined to administer his estate (Northampton, Orders XXIV-O, p. 122). They were likely the predecessors of Hollands in Northampton County today.
The first Holland will in Maryland was that of Francis Holland, Senior, of Ann Arundel County, in 1684 (Md. Calendar of Wills, Vol. I, p. 153). His wife was Margaret, a daughter was named for her, and they had a son, Francis Holland. George Holland also died testate in Ann Arundel County in 1685 (same page). George left 300 acres to Thomas, son of John Lashin, indicating he had no sons.
Richard Holland was named as a headright by Thomas Tunnel when Tunnel was granted 100 acres of land in Accomack County on 19 July 1664 (Cert. & Rights, p. 6). Richard Holland was again named as a headright in 9 November 1666, when Robert Richards on patented 2000 acres in Accomack County "nere Bockanoctum" (Nugent, Vol. II, p. 10). This last was land that later became the Snow Hill area of Worcester County, Maryland (Whitelaw, p.1389). Richard Holland's name appeared on Accomack County tithable lists from 1669 to 1677. Richard Holland bought 180 acres in Accomack County in 1673 (Whitelaw, p. 677). He and his wife Frances sold this land in 1677 (p. 683). He also owned 600 acres in 1678, Accomack County land that he and wife Frances assigned to John Scammell & Henry Lurton in that year (p. 804). Richard Holland had moved into Somerset County, Maryland, by 1681, when his eldest son's birth was recorded there, to Richard Holland and wife Sarah (They Lived in Somerset, p. 50). He apparently settled first in Annamessex, but was of Mattopony by 8 November 1692, when he was named as one of the persons appointed "to assist ye Justices in laying out & dividing ye County into Parishes "(Old Somerset, p. 153). Mattapony Hundred was then part of Somerset County, on the sea side, between the Virginia line and Bogerteononton Hundred. Richard Holland of Somerset County died testate in 1696 (Cal of Wills, Vol. II, p. 101). He named his wife as Frances (a third marriage?), three daughters under 16 years of age and sons: Nehemiah, Isreal, Richard, William and John, all also under 16.
Other early Hollands in Somerset County were: George Holland, "Butcher by profession" in 1675 and John Holland (Old Somerset, p. 293 & p. 465). George Holland apparently did not marry. He was murdered by Indians. John Holland registered his cattle mark in 1681. He and wife Ann of Wicomico Hundred, had a daughter Mary born in 1680 and a daughter Elizabeth born in 1686. No record has been found of this family after 1686. It seems likely they moved to another area.
This leaves only two Holland men who left descendants in Somerset County, Richard and Captain Michael of the next section. Of Richard Holland's five sons: son Isreal died as a youth; sons Richard and John were in Baltimore Hundred by 1724 (tax list), that part of old Somerset County, which became Worcester County in 1742, and was at times considered part of Sussex County, Delaware; son William was in Pocomoke Hundred in 1724 (tax list), he owned land near the mouth of Pocomoke River and died testate in 1752, naming a wife (Margaret Powell) and leaving property to Elizabeth Merrill, wife of Joseph, and others, but naming no children. Only Richard's son, Nehemiah Holland I, continued to live in Mattapony Hundred until his death in 1724. His son, Nehemiah Holland II was in "Mattaponi" Hundred in 1730 and 1733(tax list). He died testate in 1760, naming four sons and four daughters. He had given land to his son, Nehemiah Holland III, in 1746; Nehimmiah Holland III married Scarburgh Marshall, daughter of Peter Marshall of Accomack County (Acco. Wills 1761-1767, p. 663), and they had a son, Peter Holland (1774-1827), who was a doctor in Snow Hill. Dr. Peter Holland left a will. He had a son Peter (1810-1846), who from his will had not married, since he left his estate to his brothers and sisters. No other Peter Holland has been found in Worcester County who was a descendant of the Richard Holland line. The records that have been searched do not show the origin of Captain Michael Holland of the next section. He could have been a recent immigrant when he settled on the south side of Annemessex River, circa 1688, or he could have been a son of one of the early Hollands in Maryland or Virginia. It should be noted that another Michael Holland was patenting land in Henrico County, Virginia, in 1727 (2871 acres), in Goochland County from 1730 to 1732 (1200 acres), and Hanover County in 1731 and 1732 (6438 acres) (Nugent, Vol. III). It was apparently he who died testate in Goochland County in 1746 (Va. Wills & Adm, p. 213).

Foreword to Mary Frances Carey booklet titled "A Holland Family of Maryland."
Tracing this Holland line has proved rather difficult. Not only has it necessitated searching records in three different counties, but many more Hollands have been found then anticipated. It was seen early on that it would be impossible to connect them all.
Of the two Holland families of old Somerset County, Maryland, this one, descendants of Captain Michael Holland, was the easier to follow. With few exceptions, they did not spread as far from their original settlement, they left wills naming their children, and they passed on the same given names to their children for several generations. While William Holland of the third generation did leave Somerset County to settle in Worcester County, in between descendants of the Richard Holland line, the fact that he named a son Michael identifies William as the son of Michael Holland II.
A real problem developed in trying to determine the father of William Holland of the sixth generation. While no definite proof has been found, it has been concluded that he was a son of James Holland, blacksmith, of the Berlin area. It can .be shown that Zechariah Bowen, who married Sally Holland and administrated the estates of three of her siblings, was of the Berlin area. The records show that Sally Bowen had brothers Peter Holland, William Holland and John Holland, and a sister Elizabeth. It seems more than a coincidence that William Holland of the sixth generation gave four of his seven children these names. James Holland, blacksmith, having had a brother named Peter Holland is a final justification for connecting the line in this manner.
The references listed at the end of this write-up give sources of the records that have been searched. Several sources are not included there. Undocumented statements in the seven and eighth generations have either been given by family members or were taken from the Ira Francis Holland family Bible, now in the possession of Mr. and Mrs. Franklin A. Holland. This Bible was printed by Butler Brothers, NY, Chicago, St. Louis. It was copyrighted in 1903 by A. J. Holman & Co. The Salisbury State University Research Center, in Salisbury, Maryland, has been visited twice. The first time to search Mr. Leslie P. Dryden's papers, to read his work on Hollands of Somerset County. A second visit was made to read the original wills of the Hollands of this line. Both Somerset County and Worcester County have sent many of their old record books to the Hall of Records in Annapolis and, while abstracts of wills before 1850 are readily available locally, the primary source was needed for complete accuracy.
Mr. Frank A. Holland, of near Pocomoke City, was visited on 15 January 1995. Ira Francis Holland, seventh generation of this line, was his great-uncle, a brother to Peter J. Holland, his grandfather. When questioned as to Peter J. Holland's parents, he could only relate that they "came into this area from somewhere else", that they both got some disease and died within a month of each other, circa 1855, leaving son Peter about 18 years old and son Ira Francis as a small boy, two other sons John and William (who both disappeared during the Civil War) and a daughter Jane. He also said his grandfather's complete name was Peter John Holland. Since Peter had a brother named John, the writer suggests that Peter's middle name could have been James, for his grandfather.
Others who have helped are: Mr. and Mrs. Marion Lee Holland, who loaned the pictures for copying; Mrs. Faye Brooks, of the Worcester County Public Library at Snow Hill; Mr. Frank A. Holland's daughter, Mrs. Ruby Richardson, and her son, Keith A. Richardson, of College Park, Maryland, who sent charts of his Holland line; and Jeffrey A. Pilchard of Snow Hill, another descendant of Peter J. Holland.
Mary Frances Carey
31415 Horntown Rd.
New Church, VA. 23415
12 April 1995

Michael Holland's name first appears in Somerset County, Maryland, records in a deed dated 11 September 1688. William Coulborne, Senior, of Annemessex, in the providence of Maryland, Gentleman, gave to his daughter Penelope and her husband, Michael Holland, "a little neck of land containing 50 acres, part of 1400 acres called Pomfrett.

On 2 April 1689, Wm. Coulbourne of Somerset County signed a note saying he was indebted to Michael Holland, also of Somerset County, for "8000 pounds of merchantable tobacco and caske to contain the same, due to be paid on all demands." The note was backed by 50 acres of a tract called Increase, on Coulborne Creek, and was recorded on 14 February 1701.

While nothing has been found of Michael Holland's origins, he apparently lived in Somerset County from the time of his marriage and raised his family there. He witnessed a will there in 1707 and another in 1709.

He was named an executor with his daughter Mary in the will of Mary's husband, Wm. Bolithoe, written in 1720.

In the Somerset Tax Lists, Annamessix Hundred, he was shown as Michael Holland Sr. and was himself exempt from tax in 1739. Slave Jack is living in the household 1730-1733 and slave Sarah in 1738-1740.

The last time his name appears in Somerset County records was on 17 July 1745, when he, called Captain Michael Holland, mariner, aged 84 years, joined his wife, Penelope Holland, aged 74, in giving depositions on the boundaries of a tact called Watkins Point. This record shows Captain Michael Holland was born circa 1661 and his wife, Penelope Coulborne Holland was born circa 1671. He likely died in late 1745, or soon thereafter, as his widow was listed head of a household in the 1748 tax list for Annemessex 100. No will or administration for either of their estates has been found.

Michael married Penelope Coulbourne, daughter of Col. William Coulbourne and Margaret Cooper. (Penelope Coulbourne was born about 1671 in Somerset Co., MD and died after 1748 in Somerset Co., MD.)