Individual Details

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (August 29, 1809 – October 7, 1894) was an American physician, poet, professor, lecturer, and author. Regarded by his peers as one of the best writers of the 19th century, he is considered a member of the Fireside Poets. His most famous prose works are the "Breakfast-Table" series, which began with The Autocrat of the Breakfast-Table (1858). He is recognized as an important medical reformer.

Poet, Author, Physician. Holmes began his long career at Harvard University. He thought about studying law, but changed his mind and became a physician instead. He studied medicine both at Harvard and in Europe eventually working as a general practitioner. In time he was offered the chair of anatomy and physiology at Dartmouth then later at Harvard where he also served as dean of the medical school. In addition to his passion for medicine Holmes was also a lover of the written word composing dozens of poems, humorous essays on life and living, biographies of two of his fellow writers, and three novels. His most famous poem was the classic “Old Ironsides” which was used as part of the protest against the destruction of the USS Constitution and would help to give the ship a half-century more of existence. One of his better known works was the “Breakfast Table” series of collected essays, a fictional account of the discussions taking place around the breakfast table in a Boston Boarding house. Perhaps Holmes’ greatest achievement was that he would practice these careers concurrently for nearly forty-seven years. His contemporaries recognized Holmes as a true patriot with a deep respect for the American people and the American way of life. He was the father of Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. (bio by: Catharine) 

He was the first son of Abiel Holmes (1763–1837), minister of the First Congregational Church[2] and avid historian, and Sarah Wendell, Abiel's second wife. Sarah was the daughter of a wealthy family, and Holmes was named for his maternal grandfather, a judge. The first Wendell, Evert Jansen, left the Netherlands in 1640 and settled in Albany, New York. Also through his mother, Holmes was descended from Massachusetts Governor Simon Bradstreet and his wife, Anne Bradstreet (daughter of Thomas Dudley), the first published American poet.

On June 15, 1840, Holmes married Amelia Lee Jackson at King's Chapel in Boston.[54] She was the daughter of the Hon. Charles Jackson, formerly Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, and the niece of James Jackson, the physician with whom Holmes had studied. Judge Jackson gave the couple a house at 8 Montgomery Place, which would be their home for eighteen years. They had three children: Civil War officer and American jurist Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (1841–1935), Amelia Jackson Holmes (1843–1889), and Edward Jackson Holmes (1846–1884).

Birth	29 Aug 1809	Cambridge, Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Marriage	15 Jun 1840	King's Chapel, Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts - Amelia Lee Jackson
Census (family)	15 Jun 1860	Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts - Amelia Lee Jackson
Census (family)	22 Jun 1870	Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts - Amelia Lee Jackson
Death	7 Oct 1894	Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts
Burial		Mount Auburn Cemetery, Cambridge, Middlesex County, Massachusetts

Spouse	Amelia Lee Jackson (1818 - 1888)
Child	Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (1841 - 1935)
Child	Amelia Jackson Holmes (1843 - 1889)
Child	Edward Jackson Holmes (1846 - 1884)

Father	Rev. Abiel Holmes (1763 - 1837)
Mother	Sarah Wendell (1768 - 1862)

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