William J. Holland was a resident of Mansfield on September 5, 1861 when he enlisted as a Private in Co. H of the 7th Regiment Connecticut Volunteer Infantry.  He was wounded October 22, 1862 at Pocotaligo, South Carolina and discharged for disability March 18, 1863.

He was born about 1837 in Rhode Island to Eber and Elizabeth (Tucker) Holland. In the 1860 U.S. census in Lebanon, he is a 23 year old in the household of Eber Tucker. William Holland married Eliza A. about 1860. Children include: William Holland, born about 1861, Lillian Holland, born about 1865 and Mary Holland, born about 1869. After his Civil War service, he returned to Mansfield and worked as a farmer and a night watchman.

On February 1, 1864, he applied for an invalid pension, No. 40,000 that was granted under certificate No. 30,195. His widow applied for a pension on June 10, 1882.

William J. Holland died on May 27, 1882 in Mansfield and is buried at the Nathan Hale Cemetery in Coventry, Connecticut.