Remembering F.D. ‘Bud’ Holland, Jr.
F.D. (Bud) Holland, Jr., professor emeritus of geology, age 98, passed away on Monday, Feb. 20.
Bud was born to Frank D. and Francys Bell Holland on March 6, 1924, in Leavenworth, Kan. He was graduated from Leavenworth High school and attended the University of Kansas until called up by the U.S. Navy to the V-12 program and stationed at Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio. He was commissioned at Columbia University, New York, in December 1944, and reported aboard the USS Quick DD490 in May 1945.
He married Margine McVey, whom he had met at Oberlin, on July 14, 1945, in Abington Friends Meeting, Jenkintown, Penn. After VJ day and shakedown out of Norfolk, Holland served as sonar officer and gunnery officer on the Quick out of Sasebo, Japan, on several trips to Korea, repatriating Korean prisoners from Japan and sweeping mines in the Yellow Sea. After separation from the Navy on July 10, 1946, he returned to KU, earning a B.S. in Geology; an M.A. at the University of Missouri, and then a Ph.D. at the University of Cincinnati, where he also was curator of the University Museum.
In the fall of 1954, Bud joined the faculty of the Geology Department at the University of North Dakota, retiring from there as Professor Emeritus in 1989. In addition to teaching and research on North Dakota invertebrate fossils, he was Chairman of the Building Committee for Leonard Hall, and supervised the excavation and preparation of the triceratops skull that is displayed in the Leonard Hall lobby-museum. He spent the years 1970-72 in Washington, D.C., on leave from UND, as Director of Education of the American Geological Institute. He was a member of Sigma Xi (national honorary science society) and past president of the UND chapter, and of Sigma Gamma Epsilon (national honorary earth science society) of which he was also honorary member and past national president, besides being UND student chapter advisor for 35 years.
At the time of his death Holland was or had been a member of numerous paleontology, geology, science and teaching societies and associations.
He is survived by his son Frank Delno Holland, III (Del) and his partner Barb Bailey, of Iowa City, Iowa, son Erik L. Holland of Bismarck, N.D., four grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
Honoring his wishes, his body has been donated to The University of Iowa Deeded Body Program.
The family suggests memorials are sent to the F.D. Holland Geology Library Endowment at the University of North Dakota. https://undalumni.org/donate
