Early years Holden was born on November 24, 1818, and raised near
Hillsborough, North Carolina. Aged 10, he began a six-year apprenticeship with Dennis Heartt at the
Hillsborough Recorder newspaper in
Hillsborough, North Carolina. By age 19, Holden was working as a printer and writer at the
Raleigh Star, in
Raleigh, North Carolina. He then studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1841, and became a member of the
Whig party. However, he never practiced law and instead participated in the newspaper business. In 1846, Holden was elected to represent
Wake County in the
North Carolina House of Commons and chose to only serve one term. That year, he unsuccessfully attempted to gain the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, but was defeated by
John W. Ellis, and then his party passed him over for a Senate seat. During
Reconstruction he served a major role in North Carolina and placed the
Standard newspaper in the hands of his son,
Joseph W. Holden. However, he was defeated by
Jonathan Worth in a special election for governor in 1865. When he was elected governor, Holden gave up editorship and ownership of the
Standard, After the Democratic Party regained majorities in both houses of the state legislature in 1870, Governor Holden was
impeached by the
North Carolina House of Representatives on December 14, 1870. The other two charges received majority votes, but not the required two-thirds majorities. Holden was the first governor in American history to be impeached, convicted, and removed from office. Governor
Charles L. Robinson of Kansas was the first American governor to be impeached, however, without conviction and removal.
Later life Following his impeachment and removal from office he moved to
Washington, D.C., where he resumed working on the
Daily Chronicle. In 1873, President
Ulysses Grant appointed him as postmaster for Raleigh and he served until 1881. President
James A. Garfield was later asked by Raleigh Republicans to not re-appoint him and Holden left the Republican party after losing his position. In 2011, Holden was posthumously pardoned by the
North Carolina Senate in a 48–0 vote. ==References==