Rock Hill City Manager 1965-1979
Written and contributed to R&R by P.M. Gettys, 2015
Max Holland was born on May 19, 1923 in a rural area near Bowersville, Georgia in Hart County. His parents were Ferd Truman Holland and Ethel Dean Holland. His father was a farmer. Max had two younger siblings, Betty and Robert Dale.[1] Ferd Holland died in 1937 when he was only 41 and Max was 14. Max helped to support the family. In 1940, he and his mother, who was head of the household, were both

Image of Mr. Holland, courtesy of the City of Rock Hill, S.C.
listed as farmers.[2]
Max completed the local schools and attended Clemson College, graduating in 1944 with a degree in electrical engineering, with some classes in public administration.[3] He also served in the Navy during World War II for three and one half years.[4] During his career, Max took additional courses related to his work at the University of North Carolina, the University of South Carolina, and the University of Georgia.[5]
After World War II, Holland worked for B. O. Vannoit, a consulting engineering firm in Charlotte. While in that position, he spent some time in Rock Hill in 1949-1950 working on a project to survey the City’s electrical system.[6] Holland served as City Manager in three cities before coming to Rock Hill. His first position was in Camden, S. C., where he was employed as City Manager from August 1951 to September 1959.[7] While in Camden, he served as the President of the South Carolina City Managers’ Association. In late 1959, he moved to Kinston, North Carolina to accept the position of City Manager there, where he stayed until February of 1962.[8] He next went to Dublin, Georgia, where he served as City Manager from December 1962 to February 1965.[9]
Max was married to the former Clonnie Huskins. She was born in 1921 in Burnsville in Yancey County in the North Carolina mountains. She was one of nine children of Grover and Sarah Huskins.[10] Clonnie attended East Carolina University and was a school teacher.
When W. M. Kennedy resigned as City Manager, effective December 31, 1964, the city began a search for a replacement. Mayor Dave Lyle had in mind some very aggressive plans for the redevelopment of Rock Hill, and many of the concepts were already well underway. He and the City Council were looking for an experienced manager who could work with the many new federal programs which had been put in place in the early 1960s to redevelop downtown Rock Hill and expand the city’s horizons. They selected Max Holland because they felt he would be able to aggressively pursue these goals. At least six applicants were considered for the job, and Holland interviewed for the position and was elected unanimously by the City Council at a special meeting on January 21, 1965. He was to be paid $15,000 annually and was to start work on March 1.[11]
Holland’s introduction to Rock Hill was somewhat rocky. He had come to Rock Hill prior to beginning his work and rented a house at 829 Milton Avenue for his family. When moving day arrived, the family found that the van carrying their possessions from Dublin, Georgia had overturned near Great Falls. They spent the first night in the new home with no furniture.[12] Later, they lived at 1244 Winthrop Drive for many years. [13]
By April 1966, the scope of changes coming to Rock Hill was evident. The City Planning Commission was considering long range plans for a new city hall, a possible convention center and civic center, a new library, and a new county health department building.[14] The plans for a massive urban renewal program were well underway, and the City Council was seeking changes in state legislation to allow it to participate in the program, which would relocate the downtown railroad tracks, create underpasses to ease traffic, and clear large areas of the downtown and nearby areas.[15] The city was beginning to develop plans for extensive annexations to bring new suburban areas into the city limits.[16] The City Council was beginning to advocate the construction of a “superhighway” to connect Charlotte and Columbia, to be realized years later with the construction of I-77, and they began working toward the development of a public housing program.[17] These ambitious plans required strong leadership on the part of the City Council and City Manager Holland. He needed to be adept at using federal programs to accomplish local projects, and he needed an expanded city staff with talents in new areas. Early in his tenure, he hired the first full-time planning director, Joe Lanford, in 1966[18] Holland also foresaw the need for Rock Hill to become more proactive in the provision of water and sewer service to areas outside the city limits. South Carolina’s annexation laws are very restrictive. Over a period of time, the City developed a policy of using utility services to accomplish annexation of newly developed areas to overcome these restrictions. Holland started this process, which led to large investments in treatment plants and extended service areas.
One of the signature projects of the Holland years was the development of a downtown mall on Main Street. As commercial developments on the periphery of the town began to drain the retail vigor of the downtown, a concept was developed to create a downtown mall to compete with the new shopping centers. A two-block section of Main Street was enclosed with a roof and extensive free parking areas were created. The Town Center Mall experiment proved a failure, but it served the unintended purpose of preserving the historic downtown buildings which had been encapsulated within the mall. In later years, the mall was removed and extensive work by the City and the Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation have been undertaken to find creative new ideas for the revitalization of the Main Street area.
During the 1960s and 1970s, many of the ambitious goals outlined in Holland’s first two years were attained. During Holland’s tenure, the urban renewal clearance program was completed, the new city hall became a reality, the railroad relocation was completed, Dave Lyle Boulevard was created, a law center was built downtown, a Senior Citizens Center was built, five neighborhood centers were developed, the city limits were expanded significantly, and the Town Center Mall project became a reality. The face of Rock Hill was changed forever.
Max Holland experienced health problems, and underwent a triple coronary bypass surgery. Due to his declining health, he retired in June 1979. The City Council declared a Max Holland Day on June 23, 1979. In its proclamation, the Council stated “The community of Rock Hill has been the main beneficiary of the inexhaustible efforts of an exemplary individual such as Max Holland…Rock Hill is deeply indebted to Max Holland for providing the highest degree of professionalism…the city has been recognized repeatedly by numerous organizations as being a model community for other local governments to emulate.”[19]
During his time in Rock Hill, Holland was active in community affairs, belonging to the Frank Roach American Legion Post 34, the Rock Hill Elks Lodge 1318, and attending Oakland Baptist Church. While serving in Rock Hill, he was president of the South Carolina City Managers’ Association.
Max Holland had four children: a son, Max, Jr. and three daughters, Susan Holland Randall, Renna Holland Phillips, and Pamela A. Holland.
The Hollands remained in Rock Hill following his retirement. Max Holland passed away November 10, 1992 at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte. His co-workers praised him. Gerry Schapiro stated, “He gave me words of wisdom that have been helpful over the years, his guidance was invaluable.” Mayor Betty Jo Rhea remarked, “His co-workers looked at him as a sort of dean of city managers.”[20] Clonnie Holland passed away on June 14, 1996 at the age of 75. The Hollands are buried in Laurelwood Cemetery.
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[1] U. S. Census, 1930.
[2] U. S. Census, 1940.
[3] Rock Hill Herald, November 12, 1992.
[4] Ibid.
[5] The Charlotte Observer, November 12, 1992.
[6] Rock Hill Herald, January 21, 1965.
[7] Interview, Brenda Davis, City Clerk, Camden, S. C., November 3, 2014.
[8] Interview, Christina Alphin, City Clerk, Kinston, N. C., November 3, 2014.
[9] Interview, Joe Kinard, City Clerk, Dublin, GA, November 5, 2014.
[10] U. S. Census, 1930.
[11] Rock Hill Herald, Jan. 21, 1965
[12] Rock Hill Herald, February ___, 1965.
[13] U. S. Public Records Index.
[14] Rock Hill Herald, April 2, 1966.
[15] Rock Hill Herald, April 8, 1966.
[16] Rock Hill Herald, April 11, 1966.
[17] Rock Hill Herald, April 12, 1966.
[18] Lynn Willoughby, The “Good Town” Does Well: Rock Hill, S. C., 1852-2002, page 233.
[19] City Council Minutes, June 25, 1979.
[20] Charlotte Observer, November 12, 1992.
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I enjoyed this article, thank you for posting it. There are, however, a few minor items that should be corrected. The source for footnote 11 cannot be the 1930 US Census, I suspect the author meant a newspaper article from 1965. The paragraph regarding his children says 3, then lists a son and three daughters. I believe Renna Phillips was Max’s daughter from a previous relationship since she was born in 1944, but Max & Clonnie married in 1950. Finally, in the last paragraph, it states Max died in 1979 – he actually passed away in 1992. I really did enjoy the article and hope the feedback is appreciated.