John Dominis Holt IV facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
John Dominis Holt IV
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| Born | June 4, 1919 |
| Died | March 29, 1993 (aged 73) |
| Resting place | Oahu Cemetery |
| Alma mater | Columbia University |
| Occupation | writer, publisher, poet and cultural historian |
| Spouse(s) | Fredda Burwell Patches Damon |
| Children | 3 |
John Dominis Holt IV (June 4, 1919 – March 29, 1993) was a Native Hawaiian writer, poet and cultural historian.
Contents
Family
Holt was born June 4, 1919, in Honolulu. His parents were John Dominis Holt III (1885–1950) and May Ellen Bailey (1892–1975). His paternal grandfather was Colonel John Dominis Holt II, an officer of King Kalākaua and Queen Liliuokalani's military staff. From his mother, Holt descended from Hawaiian missionary and artist Edward Bailey.
Education
As a child, Holt briefly attended Punahou School. He later went to Kamehameha Schools, graduating from President Theodore Roosevelt High School in Honolulu. He continued his education in Sacramento Junior College and George Washington University, and from 1943 to 1946 he attended Columbia University but never acquired a degree.
Literary career
Holt wrote many books on Hawaiian history and culture, including Hawaiian featherwork, family heritage and genealogy. In 1964, his essay "On Being Hawaiian" inspired the rise of the Second Hawaiian Renaissance movement. Holt brought pride back to the Hawaiian self-identity after decades of shame and negative stereotypes. Through his writings, Hawaii saw a revival in traditional Hawaiian culture, art and language.
Holt worked as a publisher for Topgallant Publishing Company and was a trustee for the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum. He was one of the earliest contemporary Hawaiian novelists. He and his second wife Patches worked as activists in the Hawaiian community, fighting against rapid development on the island of Oahu. They were also patrons of the arts. In 1985, Holt was awarded the Hawai‘i Award for Literature by Governor John David Waiheʻe III.
Personal life
His first marriage was to Fredda M. deVere Burwell, an artist from New York. He lived in New York for some time before returning to Hawaii with his wife. After Fredda's death in 1972, he married Frances Patches McKinnon Damon, a granddaughter of Samuel Mills Damon. They adopted three children: Allison, Melanie, and Daniel. He worked as a landscape designer and contractor.
Death
Holt died on March 29, 1993. He was buried in Oahu Cemetery in Honolulu.
Interesting facts about John Dominis Holt IV
- Holt was of mixed Native Hawaiian, Tahitian and English descent.
- His ancestors included Hawaiian and Tahitian royalty, Lucien Bonaparte, the younger brother of French Emperor Napoleon, and British Admiral Lord George Paulet.
- Holt spent his youth surrounded by older generations who loved to share their memories. These stories later inspired his writing as an adult.
- In 1979, Holt was recognized as a Living Treasures of Hawaiʻi for his contribution to the Hawaiian Renaissance.
- The John Dominis Holt Award for Excellence in Publishing, named in his honor, is awarded annually by Hawaii Book Publishers Association to an individual for their lifetime contribution to Hawaiian literature and book-publishing.
- In 2001, John Dominis and Patches Damon Holt Gallery at the Honolulu Academy of Arts was named after Holt and his second wife.
