Israel Holmes was born on December 19, 1800 in Waterbury, Connecticut, United States. he was the third son of Israel and Sarah (Judd) Holmes. The father died when Israel was two years old, and from that time he lived and worked on the farm of his grandfather, Captain Samuel Judd.
At the age of sixteen, having completed the district school education, Holmes taught in the West Centre district school of Waterbury.
About 1818 Holmes entered into partnership with Horace Hotchkiss for the manufacture of hats and went to Augusta, Georgia, to take charge of a store for their sale. Two years later he returned to Waterbury and entered the employ of Leavenworth, Hayden, & Scovill (later J. M. L. & W. H. Scovill), manufacturers of brass buttons, and took charge of their store.
In 1829 he went to England for the Scovills to obtain skilled workmen and a knowledge of the methods and materials used by the more successful English manufacturers. After much difficulty, since the export of craftsmen, machines, and trade secrets was prohibited, Holmes brought a company of workers to Waterbury. In 1830, with seven partners and a capital of $8, 000, he established the firm of Holmes & Hotchkiss, for the manufacture of sheet brass and wire for the market, the first venture of the kind in the United States. He again went to England (1831) for men and equipment, and brought back the first wiredrawing and tube-making machinery seen in this country.
In 1833 when the success of this infant industry was threatened by tariff legislation admitting unmanufactured goods free, Holmes and Israel Coe went to Washington and succeeded in having special legislation enacted classifying sheet brass and wire as manufactured goods. At this time the loss of two of his children in the burning of Captain Judd's home led Holmes to sell his interest in the business and move to Wolcottville (Torrington), Connecticut, where he became one of the founders of the Wolcottville Brass Company. This firm was the first to employ the battery process in the manufacture of brass kettles.
In 1834 Holmes again went to England for experienced workers. After eleven years at Torrington he returned to Waterbury as president of the newly formed Waterbury Brass Company. In 1853 he resigned and with J. C. Booth and H. W. Hayden formed the firm of Holmes, Booth & Haydens. This company was the first organized both to roll brass and then to manufacture it on a large scale. After sixteen years as president of this firm he resigned and with Booth and L. J. Atwood, purchased the Thomas Brass Company of Thomaston, Connecticut, which they renamed Holmes, Booth & Atwood (later Plume & Atwood) and enlarged with a branch at Waterbury. With this firm he remained until his death.
Holmes stands out as one of the most prominent figures in the history of the American brass industry, and it is said that after his death no new venture of importance was organized until 1900. He was a leader in the construction of the Naugatuck Railroad, which had much to do with the success of the industry.
Holmes represented Torrington in the Connecticut legislature in 1839, and Waterbury in 1870.
Holmes' wife was Ardelia Hayden of Waterbury, by whom he had six children.
