Born in New York City in 1836, Holdredge came to California in the late 1850's and worked as a draftsman at the Mare Island Naval Yard. His paintings of he 1860's and the early 1870's were done in the realistic style of the Hudson River School. During this period he maintained a studio in San Francisco's Donahoe-Kelly Bank Building and exhibited locally. In 1874 he and Hiram Bloomer held a joint sale of their paintings to finance European studies. He left that year and spent two years studying in France. When he returned to San Francisco, his works showed a distinctly different style. The paitnings done after that time show the influence of the Barbizon School. Holdredge's works were in great demand during his lifetime, received rave reviews bt the press and were often considered superior to those done by William Keith. He travelled extensively throughout the Northwest, often living for long periods of time with various Indian tribes. He died at the Alameda County Infirmary in April 1899.

Biography courtesy of DeRu's Fine Arts, www.antiquesandfineart.com/derus