John Hulett

John Hulett's legacy continues today

Photo courtesy of the Alabama Department of Archives and History

Quick Facts

Significance:

First Black sheriff in Lowndes County, AL

Place of Birth:

Gordonville, Lowndes County

Date of Birth:

November 19, 1927

Date of Death:

August 21,2006

Place of Burial:

Gordonville, Lowndes County

Cemetery Name:

David Gordon Cemetery

John Hulett was born and raised on his small family farm in Gordonville, Lowndes County, which was nicknamed "Bloody Lowndes" due to the abundance of racial violence at the time.

Mr. Hulett moved to Birmingham in 1948. During his time there, he joined the city's NAACP chapter to encourage fellow African Americans to register to vote. When the organization was outlawed in Alabama, he became involved in the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights, going door-to-door to continue encouraging people to register to vote.

Eventually, he returned home in 1959 to help his father with the family farm. At this time, Lowndes County’s population was more than eighty-one percent Black, but less than one percent of the Black population was registered to vote. Mr. Hulett wanting to fan the flames of the already stifling movement began organizing meetings with his neighbors to discuss voter registration. In March of 1965, John Hulett became one of the first Black people to register in Lowndes County.

Considering Mr. Hulett had been involved in civil rights for almost a decade, when SNCC arrived in the summer of 1965, he was one of their first full-time supporters. The 1965 Voting Rights Act was passed, and by 1966, 2,800 people—over half of the Blacks eligible to vote—were registered.

With the increase in representation at the voting booth, residents began working towards electing a black county sheriff, believing they would be more committed to the protection of Black people. John Hulett, along with SNCC and other supporters, organized the Lowndes County Freedom Organization (LCFO), an independent political party that would run Black candidates for county-level positions. Due to the state’s high rate of illiteracy, Alabama law required political parties to have a symbol. The LCFO chose a black panther as their symbol and became known as "the Black Panther Party." John Hulett was elected its chairman.

Sadly, none of the LCFO candidates were elected in 1966, but John Hulett was elected mayor in 1970 on an American Democratic Party of Alabama ticket. He would continue to serve as county sheriff for 22 years and then served as a probate judge of Lowndes County for three terms. He was the first Black person to serve in these two positions in Lowndes County. During his time in office, Hulett worked closely with the War on Poverty program, which empowered the local Black residents. He also served on the board of the Lowndes County Office of Equal Opportunity Health Program, then the only biracial board in the county.

John Hulett became known not only as a civil rights activist but also a symbol of peace and reconciliation in a county run by racial violence.