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Birth:          13 Sep 1915 Salt Lake City, Utah
Death:          5 Jun 1991 Copalis Beach, Grays Harbor, Wash.

Notes
1920 in Salt Lake City, Utah age 4y 3m
1930 in Seattle, Wash.
SERVICE HELD FOR RETIRED JUDGE FRANCIS HOLMAN HE ALSO SERVED IN 
STATE SENATE AND HOUSE: Newspaper Obituary and Death Notice
Seattle Post-Intelligencer (WA) - June 11, 1991
Deceased Name: SERVICE HELD FOR RETIRED JUDGE FRANCIS HOLMAN HE 
ALSO SERVED IN STATE SENATE AND HOUSE
A memorial service was held at Lake Forest Park Presbyterian Church yesterday for 
former state legislator and retired King County Superior Court Judge Francis E. 
Holman. 

Mr. Holman died last Wednesday of complications from lung cancer. He was 75. 

Mr. Holman was known for his independence and compassion and was widely 
regarded for his scholarly opinions as a judge. 

He was mayor of Lake Forest Park from 1961 to 1967 and served as a Republican 
state representative from the 1st District from 1967 to 1969. He was a state senator 
from 1969 to 1972. 

While serving in the Legislature, Mr. Holman became embroiled in a bitter legal fight 
over his dismissal from a prestigious Seattle law firm that his father had founded. His 
brother, William, also was dismissed. 

Together, they filed a $3 million lawsuit against The Boeing Co. and their former law 
partners in what then was known as Holman, Perkins, Coie, Stone and Olsen. 

They claimed they were ousted because they opposed giving favored rates for legal 
work to The Boeing Co. and because Boeing, then a client of the firm, objected to 
some of Francis Holman's positions while he was a state senator. 

Mr. Holman and his brother lost their suit. Attempts to get the U.S. Supreme Court to 
review the case failed. 

Mr. Holman was chairman of the state Public Disclosure Commission when he was 
appointed to the King County Superior Court in 1973. He served for 12 years. 

He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Eloise F. Holman; two daughters; a son; three 
brothers; and three grandchildren. 

Remembrances may be made to the Nellie Martin Carmen Scholarship Fund or Sign-
A-Vision, a non-profit agency serving deaf children, in care of P.O. Box 30580, Seattle 
98103. 
http://genforum.genealogy.com/holman/messages/2561.html:
Francis E. Holman, Former Judge
By Aly Colon

What Francis E. Holman relished most in his life was getting things done that served 
the public.

To those who knew him, Mr. Holman, 75, who died yesterday (June 5) of complications 
from lung cancer, was a bear-sized, gentle man who used a brilliant legal mind in a 
compassionate, caring way.

He displayed those qualities as a lawyer and citizen who helped foil a developer's plan 
to impose an unwanted shopping center upon a community, as a state legislator who 
championed unpopular causes, and as a judge who showed fairness but compassion.

And it wasn't he who initially sought public office, it sought him, said his son, Frank 
Holman.

A vacancy on a local school board prompted someone to ask Mr. Holman to serve. His 
desire to help led to a civic involvement that spanned four decades. It included stints 
as Lake Forest Park's first mayor, a state legislator and a King County Superior Court 
judge.

"He had a visionary view of what communities could be like. He practiced that by 
founding a city that is flourishing now: Lake Forest Park," said Lake Forest Park 
Councilman Roger Loschen. "He was the kind of judge everybody thinks a judge 
should be: a man of scholarship, compassion and judgment. He was one of the giants 
of this area."

In the Legislature, where he served as representative and senator, Mr. Holman 
became known as a legislator who served the public rather than special interests.

"Fran was one of those rare people in the Legislature that was absolutely 
independent," said Dan Evans, who was governor at the time Mr. Holman served. "No 
one could ever get to him with political influence."

Evans recalled that Mr. Holman couldn't be budged even by The Boeing Co., taking a 
stand involving taxation that Boeing opposed.

"That was the kind of thing that would typify Fran Holman. He was courageous 
enough to stand up," Evans said.

It was reported at the time that Mr. Holman's stand may have been what cost him his 
partnership in one of the largest and most prestigious law firms in the state.

But Mr. Holman continued in the Legislature, dealing with an array of issues he 
believed important, such as tax reform and the budget, and making them 
understandable to the public.

Alan Bluechel, a Republican state senator, said Mr. Holman "epitomized the good 
government legislator."

"His interest was in making government work better for the average citizen," Bluechel 
said. "The types of issues he tackled were broad complex issues where everybody 
benefited."

King County Judge Charles Z. Johnson remembered Mr. Holman as a judge other 
judges would seek out for advice because of his long history as a legislator and 
lawyer.

Mr. Holman, who studied law at both Oxford University in England and Harvard Law 
School, was known to be brilliant lawyer and judge, said state Appeals Court Judge 
Gerry Alexander.

"He was a real scholar," Alexander said. "And he was a real sweet person, in the 
finest sense. He once had a clash, a verbal sparring with a powerful legislator who 
lost his temper. Fran did not. Fran was just cool. He showed his class by speaking 
calmly. He let his intellect talk for him."

Mr. Holman also became involved in a number of community projects. He was co-
founder of Northwest Hospital, Shoreline Community College, the KCTS-TV board and 
the north district YMCA.

His life was marked by his commitment to his work, to his community and to his family, 
said Frank Holman. "He was a man of simple faith. But it had a profound depth."

Mr. Holman is survived by wife, Eloise Holman; three children, Virginia Holman-
Schmidt, Frank Holman and Wendy Holman; and grandchildren Nicholas Holman, 
Benjamin Holman, Stefan Schmidt, all of the Seattle area; and brothers Colin Holman, 
Port Ludlow, William Holman, Bellevue, and James Holman, Seattle.

Memorial services will be held Sunday afternoon at Lake Forest Park Presbyterian 
Church.

Remembrances may be made to the Nellie Martin Carmen Scholarship Fund or Sign-
A-Vision Institute, a nonprofit agency that serves deaf children, P.O. Box 30580, 
Seattle WA 98103.

Parents
HOLMAN Frank E. (7 Jan 1886 - 28 Nov 1967)
EDWARDS Carol B. (1887 - ABT 1960)

Siblings
HOLMAN Francis Edwards (13 Sep 1915 - 5 Jun 1991)
HOLMAN Colin Baker (10 Oct 1917 - 13 Nov 2008)
HOLMAN William M. (17 Jul 1919 - 8 Oct 1991)
HOLMAN James Allen (8 Jul 1932 - 20 Apr 1998)

Marriage To FERGUSON Eloise Gertrude (8 Dec 1913 - 31 Jan 2001)
    m. 1941 

Notes

Parents
FERGUSON Wyatt ()
----- Alta ()

Children by FERGUSON Eloise Gertrude 8 Dec 1913 - 31 Jan 2001
HOLMAN [CHG TO HOLMAN-SCHMIDT] Virginia Carrol ("Gini") ()
HOLMAN Frank Wyatt ()
HOLMAN Wendy R. ()

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