James J Hulsey History Sheet

 1754 James was born to Charles Hulsey and Hannah Witt in Goochland, Virginia.

James J. Hulsey

b. 1754 Gochland, Virginia

d. 1 Jan 1827 Hall Co. Georgia

 

In the research, this man is found as James Jennius Hulsey.  The person who first inserted "Jennius" could not substantiate it and has since recanted it.  He was known as James Hulsey; however, I am not going to take off "Jennius" because much history can be found using it.  Most claim that he married Anna(No Maiden Name), not Sarah (NMN).  His brother, Adonijah, married Sarah.

 

James Hulsey is from the third generation of Hulseys.  He lived much of his adult life within 10 miles of his brothers in Georgia until Charles III (a brother) migrated to TN and later to AR.  The third and fourth generations were illiterate so very few family records, other than marriage licenses and land deeds, were kept until the fifth generation.  They lived in Georgia an area intertwined with the Cherokee Nation.  Of the 5 Hulsey brothers that came to GA in 1800-1809, all had first wives that may have been of Cherokee ancestry. 

 

As the whites settled North Carolina where James was found in 1776, many of the Cherokee moved further westward.  South Carolina and Georgia were also bordered by the Cherokee Nation and boundaries were changing.  After the Louisiana Purchase was completed, the United States Government encouraged Cherokees in the eastern homeland to immigrate to Arkansas to join the Old Settlers that had emigrated after the Revolutionary War.  In the 1820’s and 1830’s, many persons of Cherokee ancestry joined the Arkansas Cherokees before the Trail of Tears forced removal.  If a person immigrated to western or northwestern Arkansas, it is likely that the emigrant had some measure of Cherokee ancestry.  In Georgia, the Cherokee Nation attracted persons of Cherokee ancestry before the Cherokee Removal of 1837-1839.  A person of some Cherokee ancestry or a Cherokee wife could settle vacant land; hence, some of the Hulsey family later moved to the Cherokee Nation. 

 

I believe that this is where some confusion of the Hulsey lines came to pass.  Robert, grandson of James and son of Pleasant, married Mary Jane ?, and two of their children later applied for Cherokee land by claiming Cherokee heritage; yet in this document, they gave different answers to extensive questions about the names of their ancestors. The discrepancies are many.  (See the Document on Robert Hulsey).  Unfortunately for family historians, these discrepancies are detrimental for establishing true family lines.  However, I feel that I can establish my line through James and Pleasant to Jefferson Parks.  Following are the facts that I can establish about James J. Hulsey.