Woody Holton
Encyclopedia
Abner Linwood "Woody" Holton, III is an Associate Professor of History at the University of Richmond
in Virginia
and is a member of the Richmond Research Institute
.
and received his PhD from Duke University
.
He is the son of former Virginia Governor A. Linwood Holton Jr.
, the brother of former Virginia First Lady Anne Holton
, and the brother-in-law of Anne's husband, Virginia Governor Tim Kaine
.
Holton spent the 2008-2009 academic year on sabbatical preparing this study of the life of First Lady Abigail Adams. The book focuses extensively on the role of creditors and bond speculators in the creation of the United States Constitution, by examining the financial savvy of one of America's earliest and most aggressive female investors.
's 1994 bid for Virginia's Senate seat (North lost by 3% of the vote).
In 1981-1983, during terms, he served as a legislative aide in the Virginia General Assembly, working for Hon. Robert T. Andrews (R-McLean). As an aide, characterized in the Washington Post as an energetic "young tiger," he helped Delegate Andrews to draft and pass Virginia's first child safety seat law, changes to the Alcohol Safety Action Program (ASAP) for post-conviction referral, and other legislation and acts benefiting the Commonwealth.
University of Richmond
The University of Richmond is a selective, private, nonsectarian, liberal arts university located on the border of the city of Richmond and Henrico County, Virginia. The University of Richmond is a primarily undergraduate, residential university with approximately 4,000 undergraduate and graduate...
in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and is a member of the Richmond Research Institute
Richmond Research Institute
The Richmond Research Institute at the University of Richmond was created in 2004 as a vehicle for involving Richmond students in faculty research and in publicizing faculty research results....
.
Life
He is a graduate of the University of VirginiaUniversity of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
and received his PhD from Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
.
He is the son of former Virginia Governor A. Linwood Holton Jr.
A. Linwood Holton Jr.
Abner Linwood Holton, Jr. was the 61st Governor of Virginia, and the first Republican governor since Reconstruction. He was governor from 1970 to 1974...
, the brother of former Virginia First Lady Anne Holton
Anne Holton
Anne Bright Holton is the wife of former Governor Tim Kaine, serving as First Lady of Virginia from 2006 to 2010.-Early life:Anne Holton was born in Roanoke, Virginia, and is the daughter of A. Linwood Holton, Jr., and Jinks Holton. In 1969, her father was elected as Governor of Virginia, serving...
, and the brother-in-law of Anne's husband, Virginia Governor Tim Kaine
Tim Kaine
Timothy Michael "Tim" Kaine is a Virginia politician. Kaine served as the 70th Governor of Virginia from 2006 to 2010, and was the chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2009 to 2011...
.
Holton spent the 2008-2009 academic year on sabbatical preparing this study of the life of First Lady Abigail Adams. The book focuses extensively on the role of creditors and bond speculators in the creation of the United States Constitution, by examining the financial savvy of one of America's earliest and most aggressive female investors.
Political Activities
In 1990, Prof. Holton created Clean Up Congress (CUC), a non-profit, political action committee. In 1994 CUC waged a bipartisan campaign to defeat Oliver NorthOliver North
Oliver Laurence North is a retired U.S. Marine Corps officer, political commentator, host of War Stories with Oliver North on Fox News Channel, a military historian, and a New York Times best-selling author....
's 1994 bid for Virginia's Senate seat (North lost by 3% of the vote).
In 1981-1983, during terms, he served as a legislative aide in the Virginia General Assembly, working for Hon. Robert T. Andrews (R-McLean). As an aide, characterized in the Washington Post as an energetic "young tiger," he helped Delegate Andrews to draft and pass Virginia's first child safety seat law, changes to the Alcohol Safety Action Program (ASAP) for post-conviction referral, and other legislation and acts benefiting the Commonwealth.
Awards
- 2007 National Book AwardNational Book AwardThe National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...
finalist, for Unruly Americans and the Origins of the Constitution - 2008 Guggenheim FellowshipGuggenheim FellowshipGuggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
- 2010 Bancroft PrizeBancroft PrizeThe Bancroft Prize is awarded each year by the trustees of Columbia University for books about diplomacy or the history of the Americas. It was established in 1948 by a bequest from Frederic Bancroft...
, for Abigail Adams
Books
- Forced Founders: Indians, Debtors, Slaves and the Making of the American Revolution in Virginia, University of North Carolina Press, 1999, ISBN 9780807847848
- Unruly Americans and the Origins of the Constitution, Macmillan, 2007, ISBN 9780809080618
- Abigail Adams, Simon and Schuster, 2009, ISBN 9781416546801
- Black Americans in the Revolutionary Era: A Brief History with Documents, Bedford/St. Martin's, 2009, ISBN 9780312413590