John Henry Holliday was born on August 14, 1851 in Griffin, Georgia to Henry Burroughs Holliday and Alice Jane Holliday née McKey. He was baptized on March 21, 1852 in the Presbyterian Church of Griffin. John’s parents were respected Griffin citizens. Alice ran a very religious household. Henry was the first Clerk of Superior Court of Spalding County. He was part of the Confederate Army and in 1862, left it with the rank of Major.

John's mother died of tuberculosis on September 16, 1866, when John was 15 years old. Three months later, his father remarried Rachel Martin. Shortly after the marriage, the family moved to Valdosta, Georgia, where John attended the Valdosta Institute. There he received a strong classical secondary education in rhetoric, grammar, mathematics, history and languages — principally Latin, but also French and some ancient Greek. In 1870, 19 year-old John Henry left home to begin dental school in Philadelphia. On March 1, 1872, he received the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery from the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery. Later that year, he opened a dental office with Arthur C. Ford in Atlanta.

Not long after beginning his dental practice, Doc was diagnosed with tuberculosis. It is possible he contracted the disease from his mother. He was given only a few months to live, although it was thought that moving to the drier and warmer southwestern part of the United States might help to reduce the deterioration of his health.

In Dallas, Doc attempted many times to continue his dental practice, but his continuous coughing deterred patients. Doc was an educated man and learned the skills of poker very quickly. In the saloons, patrons paid no attention to his constant coughing, and there, Doc could also drink to ease the pain of his disease.

On November 8, 1887, Doc died in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Because of his participation in the famous gunfight at the O. K. Corral that lasted less than one minute, Doc’s name will live forever in western history.

He should, however, also be remembered by his earlier accomplishments and that he had survived his tuberculosis for a remarkable 15 years.

Doc’s distant cousin still resides in Griffin and has taken the responsibility of preserving the history and legacy of his famous relative.