Henry james holden biography of nancy

by Graham McDonald

Holden is no more: General Motors announces the 164-year-old Aussie auto brand will be axed by the end of the year. 

– Business Insider Australia, 17 February 2020 

This announcement caused shock waves throughout Australia as so many of the population had grown up with the Holden brand. This was a sad ending, considering the incredible efforts of ingenuity and hard work by Sir Henry James Holden to establish the company that would grow to be the biggest automotive body builder in the British Empire by 1929.  

But in October 1929, the factory closed temporarily for lack of continuous work. Henry Holden knew he needed to develop the business in a new direction, and in January 1930, he set out for the United States to discuss amalgamation with General Motors. These discussions were finalised in 1931, and Henry came back home to begin developing Australia’s own Holden car. 

The first ‘home-grown’ Holden model, the 48-215 (also affectionately known as the ‘FX Holden’), rolled off the assembly line at Fishermans Bend Factory in Melbourne on 29 November 1948 and was unveiled by the then Prime Minister, Ben Chifley. 

The FX was a strong and economical family sedan, designed especially for the Australian environment. The price was set at $733 including tax, which equalled 94 weeks of wages for the average worker at the time. Despite this, the car was an instant success and Holden could not satisfy demand quickly enough. 18,000 people immediately signed up and paid their deposit without even seeing the car. 

By 1958, Holden had captured more than 40 per cent of total car sales in Australia. By 1962, one million Holdens had been sold and, despite strong market competition from the Ford Falcon, another million cars were sold by 1966. 

So how was it that Henry Holden got started in this business? 

After gaining experience in his father’s leather and saddlery business, Henry went on to become a carriage-b

For the motor vehicle produced in Australia 1974–1976, see Holden HJ.

Henry James Holden (18 July 1859 – 6 March 1926) was an Australian businessman, a partner in Holden & Frost, which became the automobile manufacturer Holden. He was a longstanding member of the Kensington and Norwood Corporation, and served as mayor for nine years.

History

Henry was born in Adelaide the eldest child of James Alexander Holden (1 April 1835 – 1 June 1887) and his wife Mary Elizabeth Holden, née Phillips (9 December 1839 – 17 April 1914). He was educated at the Norwood College run by Thomas Caterer, followed by Hahndorf College.

In August 1885 J. A. Holden sold to Henry and to H. A. Frost his interest in the retail arm of the company, which was in financial difficulties. In November 1885 the company became Holden & Frost with the formal introduction into the partnership of Frost, who had brought to the company additional capital.

In 1886 J. A. Holden was declared insolvent. He put the wholesale arm of the business on the open market as well as the Grenfell Street warehouse. He put his Kensington Park house and grounds on the market for urgent sale. Under the terms of the voluntary liquidation, Holden & Frost continued to operate from the premises at 100 Grenfell Street, which was later purchased by Harris, Scarfe & Co.

In 1899, with the advent of the Boer War, there arose a sudden demand for saddles, harness, leggings, Sam Browne belts and so on. Holden & Frost were quick to purchase new machinery and rent additional premises in Norwood, and their business thrived.

In 1905 Henry's son Edward Wheewall Holden graduated B.Eng from Adelaide University, and was admitted to the company. He foresaw the decline in horse transport, and seeing a future for the company in motor vehicles, encouraged his father to visit the United States to observe autom

James Alexander Holden (1 April 1835 – 1 June 1887) was the businessman who founded the South Australian company which eventually produced the Holden automobile.

History

James Alexander Holden was born in Walsall (at that time in Staffordshire), the younger son of Edward Holden, saddler and hardware merchant, and his American wife Elizabeth, née Mason. Their elder son was Edward Thomas Holden, later Sir Edward, industrialist and, briefly, Liberal MP for Walsall. James's mother died when he was quite young, and something like enmity developed between him and his father's new wife.

Then in 1851 his father died, leaving his business to his second wife and the older son, and James was urged by George Fife Angas to forge a new life in the new colony of South Australia. But first he sailed to America, where he was hospitably received by his mother's sister, then after a few years reached Adelaide, arriving in 1852, just as half the male population of South Australia was trying its luck in the goldfields of the neighbouring colony of Victoria.

He found rented accommodation, and employment with chemist F. H. Faulding. In 1853 his cousin Edwin Thomas Smith emigrated to South Australia aboard the California and with help from Holden began importing ironmongery. In 1856 he set up in business as J. A. Holden & Co., merchants and wholesale saddlers, selling imported and locally made (no doubt from his brother) saddles, whips and harnesses. His business flourished, and in 1857 he married his landlady's daughter and purchased a four-roomed cottage in Beulah Park. They later moved into a larger home in Magill, then a year later sold up both places for a Kensington Park property of 15 acres (6.1 ha), where in 1871 the original cottage was replaced with a seven roomed residence, with substantial additions in 1875.

The business also went through a succession of addresses, from the original leas