Athens in Athens County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Milton M. Holland

Photographed by Rev. Ronald Irick, May 24, 2021

1. Milton M Holland Marker

Inscription. (side A)
Born a slave in Texas on August 1, 1844, Holland was brought to the integrated Albany Manual Labor University in 1851 by his friend and owner where he learned the trade of shoemaker. He acted as a servant to Colonel Nelson Van Vorhes from 1861-1863. In the summer of 1863 he formed Company C of Athens County men for the 5th United States Colored Infantry here at this fairgrounds and eventually attained the rank of Regimental Sergeant Major. As a result of rallying the regiment at the Battle of New Market Heights on September 29, 1864, he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, the Butler Medal and a battlefield commission to Captain, the later denied by the War Department on the basis of color. (Continued on other side) (side B) (Continued from other side) Holland returned to Athens for a brief period after the war. He then lived in Columbus for three years and married Virginia Dickey of that city before residing in the Washington D.C. area for the rest of his life. He served in several positions in the U.S. Treasury Department, earned a law degree from Howard University in 1872 and worked in various

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capacities for the Ohio Republican Party. He was also a member of the Washington Emigrant Aid Society, worked on numerous civil rights issues, served on the local school board and helped form several of the first black-owned businesses. These included the Capitol Savings Bank, the Industrial Building and Savings Company and the Alpha Insurance Company. He died on May 15, 1910., in Silver Springs, MD, at the age of 66. He is buried with honor in the Arlington National Cemetery.

Erected 2013 by Athens Foundation, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, Townsend Camp 108.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Industry & Commerce • War, US Civil.

Location. 39° 19.834′ N, 82° 6.841′ W. Marker is in Athens, Ohio, in Athens County. It can be reached from West Union Street (Ohio Route 56) east of Hospital Drive, on the left when traveling east. Located at the Athens County Fairgrounds, due north of the south gate. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 286 West Union Street, Athens OH 45701,

Photographed by Rev. Ronald Irick, May 24, 2021

2. Milton M Holland Marker

United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Hocking Hills.

It is also in the American Midwest,

in the Ohio River Valley,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Northern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Booker T. Washington (approx. 0.4 miles away); Athens Veterans Memorial (approx. 0.4 miles away); West Union Street Biofiltration Boxes (approx. half a mile away); Eliza Davidson Memorial (approx. half a mile away); Susannah Arnold Anthony (approx. half a mile away); World War I Memorial (approx. half a mile away); In Memory of Johnny Appleseed (approx. 0.6 miles away); Mount Zion Baptist Church (approx. 0.7 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Athens.

Photographed by Rev. Ronald Irick, May 24, 2021

3. Milton M Holland Marker

Photographed by Rev. Ronald Irick, May 24, 2021

4. Milton M Holland Marker

Photographed by Rev. Ronald Irick, May 24, 2021

5. Milton M Holland Marker

portrait on the marker

Photographed by Rev. Ronald Irick, May 24, 2021

6. Milton M Holland Marker

logo of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War

Credits. This page was last revised on May 26, 2021. It was originally submitted on May 26, 2021, by Rev. Ronald Irick of West Liberty, Ohio. This page has been viewed 844 times since then and 72 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on May 26, 2021, by Rev. Ronald Irick of West Liberty, Ohio. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.