John Frederick Holland (ca 1764 – December 17, 1845) was an army officer, surveyor and political figure in

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen Provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has seve ...

. He represented

Charlottetown Charlottetown is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island, and the county seat of Queens County. Named after Queen Charlotte, Charlottetown was an unincorporated town until it was incorporated as a city in ...

in the

Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island The Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island (french: Assemblée législative de l'Île-du-Prince-Édouard) is the sole chamber of the General Assembly of Prince Edward Island. The Legislative Assembly meets at Province House, which is locate ...

from 1803 to 1812. He was born at Observation Cove (later Holland Cove), the son of Samuel Holland, while his father was surveying St. John's Island (later Prince Edward Island). He joined the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

in 1777 and, in 1779, joined the

King's Royal Regiment of New York The King's Royal Regiment of New York, also known as Johnson's Royal Regiment of New York, King's Royal Regiment, King's Royal Yorkers, and Royal Greens, were one of the first Loyalist regiments, raised on June 19, 1776, in British Canada, durin ...

, reaching the rank of

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

. After Holland left the army in 1783, he joined a survey team laying out settlements west of the

Ottawa River The Ottawa River (french: Rivière des Outaouais, Algonquin: ''Kichi-Sìbì/Kitchissippi'') is a river in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. It is named after the Algonquin word 'to trade', as it was the major trade route of Eastern ...

and later worked on establishing the border between Quebec and New Brunswick. Holland married Mary Emily Tissable sometime before 1790. He became a lieutenant in Prince Edward's regiment and assisted in the construction of the citadel at Halifax. After getting himself into trouble there, he was sent to Charlottetown, where he served as

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

and high sheriff. By accusing the Loyal Electors, a political group, of being a seditious secret society, Holland succeeded in having

James Bardin Palmer James Bardin Palmer (ca 1771 – March 3, 1833) was an Irish-born land agent, lawyer and politician in Prince Edward Island. He represented Charlottetown in the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island from 1806 to 1818. He was born in ...

, one of the group's leading members, removed from his various appointments and was himself named adjutant general of militia. He was named to the Legislative Council in 1815. He was removed from the council in 1819 following allegations by Governor

Charles Douglass Smith Charles Douglass Smith ( – February 19, 1855) was a British army officer and colonial administrator. Life He was born in England, the son of John Smith, a former captain in the British Army, and Mary Wilkinson. In 1776, he was commissione ...

related to Holland's membership in the

Masonic Freemasonry or Masonry refers to Fraternity, fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of Stonemasonry, stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their inte ...

lodge in Charlottetown. Holland was unsuccessful in later attempts at re-election and was forced to sell much of his property after he was dropped from his post in the militia. He resigned as justice of the peace in 1841 and died in Charlottetown four years later. He was predeceased by his son

Samuel John Holland Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bib ...

(d. 1822) and wife (1831), but survived by his two other sons and daughters.

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
1845 deaths People from Queens County, Prince Edward Island Members of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island Year of birth uncertain Year of birth unknown Members of the Legislative Council of Prince Edward Island Colony of Prince Edward Island people {{PrinceEdwardIsland-politician-stub