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James Hillsman, in his own words |
| If he could speak to us today, James Hillsman might describe his life as follows. |
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I was born in Amelia County not long before Mother died in November 1771 and was only 9 when Father made his will leaving me “half the hard money I have - one black colt, one bed and furniture… my saddle and bridle and the other part of my wearing apparel and I also desire… James be maintained out of my estate and schooled two years.” So, you see, I was educated. |
Lucy Clements and I made our marriage vows before Rev. John Skurrey 11 February 1802.  Four years later, in June 1806, her brother William Clement sold us 100 acres of land. By 1810 we were the parents of a son and two daughters and then owned 6 slaves. |
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Five of our eight children were the ancestors of most of the Hillsman’s of Virginia. The others went to Mississippi, Texas, and Kentucky. |
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Lucy was 55 in April 1831 when Dr. Sterling Ford diagnosed her with “acute intermittent fever - chronic profuse menstruation with pain since May last, but regular.” I do not know when she died, but I went in 1847. |
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Two witnesses of an 1832 deed in Amelia County were “Jno. A. Hillsman” and “James C. Hillsman.” The first individual was James’ son John Albert Hillsman and the second we presume was his father. This is the only indication we have of James’ middle initial. His son James A. Hillsman would have been about 20 when they witnessed this deed so perhaps James felt the need to use his middle initial to distinguish himself from the other “James Hillsman.” |
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In 1820 James owned 227 acres in Amelia County, part of which he sold to Thomas Wiley in 1821, and the next year bought 302 acres from Dr. John Y. Stodgell and his wife, Catherine. In 1842 bought a 340-acre tract from Richard Davis Booker and his wife, Emily. |
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James died 1 April 1847 leaving a will in Amelia County. In 1860 they described this property as “Dr. Hillsman’s.” |
Descendants of James Hillsman |
Information about the children of James Hillsman, their descendants, and allied families previously found at Virginians.com is
now available as Southside Virginia Genealogies.
Learn more  |
| Names found in this topic include the following. |
| | Susan B. (Hillsman) Blankenship (1804-1845), |
| Edwin C. Blankenship, Martha A. Overton, |
| James Blankenship, Maria Louise Hillsman, |
| Imogene Blankenship, |
| Charles Blankenship, Fuqua, |
| | Col. John Albert Hillsman (1806-1859), |
| | Catherine M. (Hillsman) Eanes (1808-), |
| Watkins L. Eanes, Herbert Eanes, Nancy M. Eanes, William Walker Ligon, |
| William Baxter Ligon, |
| Lucy Rebecca Eanes, Robert S. Ligon, |
| John Eanes, |
| James H. Eanes, Mary Catherine Miller, |
| Ann P. Eanes, Col. Slaughter, |
| Mary Eanes, Dr. McGowan, |
| Thomas William Eanes, Ellen Branch Miller, |
| Richard Eanes, Emma Chappell, |
| Alice Eanes, Tom P. Burdett, F.A. Heep, |
| | Martha Clement (Hillsman) Miller (1810-1886), |
| Ryland Miller, Dabney Miller, Polly Crowder, William Crowder, |
| Mary Catherine Miller, James H. Eanes, |
| Elizabeth Armistead Miller, W.C. McGowan, |
| Ann Mariah Miller, |
| Lucy Dabney Miller, Abraham Croixdale Brown, |
| Martha Ryland Miller, John Cyrus Hillsman, |
| Ellen Branch Miller, Thomas William Eanes, |
| James Dabney Miller, Mattie Brown, |
| Virginia Josephine Miller, James S. Penn, |
| Adela Hillsman Miller, E.A. McGowan, |
| John William Miller, |
| | James A. Hillsman (1812-1838), |
| | Sterling Smith Hillsman (1814-1861), |
| Roxanna Goode, |
| James E. Hillsman, Margaret J. Phillips, |
| Emma Walker Price, |
| Aurelius S. Hillsman, Sallie Stewart, |
| Thomas McDowell Hillsman, |
| William H. Hillsman, Anne E. Martin, |
| Mary F. Hillsman, William A. Dowdy, |
| John Cyrus Hillsman, |
| Martha Ryland Miller, |
| Margaret F. Hillsman, William Marsh, |
| Samuel D. Hillsman, |
| Lillian Richards, |
| Susan Catherine Hillsman, William Edward Overacre, |
| Esther Virginia Hillsman, John Cheadle Marsh, |
| Albert Goode Hillsman, Anne Elizabeth Pollard, John Robert Pollard, |
| | Judith Ann Hillsman (1817-1818), |
| | William Henry Hillsman (1819-1896), |
| Martha Jane Overton Townes, |
| Nannie Lula Hillsman, Charles B. Edmunds, |
| Lillian Hillsman, |
| Charles J. Hillsman, |
| Henry Willis Hillsman, |
| William Paschal Hillsman, Sally Ewing Pope, Bina Alexander, |
| George Albert Hillsman, Ruth Evelyn Powell, |
| Mary E. Hillsman, |
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| Notables |
This family topic includes the following notable individuals.
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Selected sources |
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Hillsman, Thomas W., Naomi B. Hillsman, and Edward L. Hillsman. The Hillsman Family. Second Edition Revised. Privately published, 1996. • An outstanding presentation of this family, although it errs in the depiction of early generations. Includes my Hil(l)sman ancestors: John Hilsman, Nicholas Hillsman, Matthew Hillsman, James Hillsman, Col. John Albert Hillsman, and James Moses Overton Hillsman. |
Notes |
This topic, which represents .11% of all the family history material at Virginians.com,
includes 26 citations and the names of 103 individuals.
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