Holly History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

In the 18th and 19th centuries hundreds of thousands of Irish people immigrated to North American shores. The early settlers were enticed by the promise of their own land, but they were moderately well off in Ireland when they decided to emigrate. Therefore, they were merely carrying out a long and carefully thought out decision. The 1840s saw the emergence of a very different trend: thousands of extremely desperate people crammed into passenger boats hoping to find any type of opportunity. The Irish of this decade had seen their homeland severely stricken by crop failures which resulted in widespread disease and starvation. At whatever time the Irish immigrants came to North America, they were instrumental in the rapid development of the emerging nations of the United States and what would become known as Canada. An exhaustive search of passenger and immigration lists has revealed many persons bearing the name Holly, or one of its variants:

Holly Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

• Elizabeth Holly, aged 30, who landed in Massachusetts Bay in 1635 aboard the ship "Blessing" 5
• John Holly, who landed in Virginia in 1650 5
• Lyonell Holly, who landed in Virginia in 1652 5
• Bernard Holly, who landed in Maryland in 1658 5
• Tyonll Holly in Virginia in 1665
• ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Holly Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

• William DeForest Holly, who arrived in Mobile County, Ala in 1836 5
• Mr. Charles Holly, aged 20, British labourer who arrived in New Orleans aboard the ship "Hope" on 1st April 1842
• Georg David Ludw Holly, who landed in America in 1852 5
• Joh Holly, who arrived in America in 1857 5
• Jeremiah J Holly, who arrived in Mobile, Ala in 1858 5

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Holly Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

• Mr. Ebenezer Holly U.E. born in Connecticut, USA who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1784 listed as signing the Quaker Loyalist Agreement he was also a High Contestable for the City of Saint John 6
• Mrs. Jane Holly U.E. who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1784 listed as signing the Quaker Loyalist Agreement 6
• Mrs. Mary Holly U.E. born in Connecticut, USA who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1784 listed as signing the Quaker Loyalist Agreement 6

Holly Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

• Mary Holly, who arrived in Nova Scotia in 1831
• Miss. Margaret Holly who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Ellen Simpson" departing from the port of Limerick, Ireland but died on Grosse Isle In 1847 7
• Mrs. Catherine Holly, aged 30 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Scotland" departing 13th April 1847 from Cork, Ireland; the ship arrived on 8th June 1847 but she died on board 8
• Miss. Catherine Holly, aged 2 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Scotland" departing 13th April 1847 from Cork, Ireland; the ship arrived on 8th June 1847 but she died on board 8
• Mr. James Holly, aged 2 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Scotland" departing 13th April 1847 from Cork, Ireland; the ship arrived on 8th June 1847 but he died on board 8
• ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Holly Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

• William Holly and his wife Keturah arrived in Port Adelaide aboard the ship "Apolline" in 1840 9
• William Holly, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Apolline" in 1840 9
• Keturah Holly, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Apolline" in 1840 9
• Daniel Holly, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Fairfield" in 1840 10
• Ellen Holly, aged 21, a servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1851 aboard the ship "Marion" 11

• Ellen Virginia Holly (1931-2023), American actress, best known for her role as Carla Gray–Hall on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live (1968–1980; 1983–1985)
• William Harrison Holly (1869-1958), American jurist, United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (1943-1958)
• Buddy Holly (1936-1959), stage name of Charles Hardin Holley, American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of Rock and Roll, killed in a plane crash with Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper, famously referred to as "The Day the Music Died" in Don McLean's 1971 song "American Pie"
• Doyle Holly (1936-2007), stage name of Doyle Floyd Hendricks, American musician, best known as the bass guitar player of Buck Owens and the Buckaroos
• Lauren Michael Holly (b. 1963), American actress, best known for her role as Deputy Sheriff Maxine Stewart in the TV series Picket Fences
• Jeffrey Owen Holly (b. 1953), American retired Major League Baseball pitcher for the Minnesota Twins
• Brigadier-General Joseph Andrew Holly (1896-1987), American Deputy Chief of Staff Assembly Area Command, US European Theater of Operations (1945-1946) 12
• Melissa Holly Suffield (b. 1992), English actress from London, best known for her role as Lucy Beale in the BBC soap opera EastEnders
• Imogen Holly Aird (b. 1969), English television actress, best known for her role on the BBC1 drama series Waking the Dead
• William Holly Johnson (b. 1960), English artist, writer and musician