Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis (1787 - 1875)

Born 13 Dec 1787 in Georgia

Ancestors

Wife of Unknown Unknown — married about 1801 in Georgia, United States [uncertain]

Wife of Thomas Willis Jr. — married 25 Feb 1811 in Jones County Georgia

Descendants

Died 17 Oct 1875 at age 87 in Hancock County, Mississippi

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Biography

The structure of the Thomas Willis and Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis family has been difficult to decipher. We have documented from Georgia marriage records and her application discussed below that she married Thomas Willis in Jones County, GA on 25 Feb 1811. After Thomas Willis' death, Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis applied for compensation based on Thomas Willis' War of 1812 service. She referred to herself as having Fleming as her maiden name at the time of their marriage. Attached to her application are two affidavits as witnesses to their 1811 wedding from two women who were children at the time and raised by Julia Anna and Thomas Willis, Susan Pinice (Fleming)(Willis) Seal and Julia (Fleming) (Willis) Seal. Though it is not definite, it appears they were Julia Anna's daughters suggesting that Thomas Willis was the second husband of Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis or possibly they had a common law marriage until their third child was born in 1810. It does seem clear that Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis was born a Fleming or less likely married a Fleming who probably died prior to 1811. More data suggesting Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis was born a Fleming is found in the DNA discussion below. The reason to conclude this is Susan Pinice (Fleming) (Willis) Seal stated in her 1880 census that BOTH parents were born in Georgia. That is consistent with Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis being her mother and likely that of Julia (Fleming) (Willis) Seal, but Thomas Willis was clearly born in North Carolina meaning he would have been the adoptive second father for the two sisters. DNA data (see below) supports that Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis was born a Fleming.

History

The only Fleming family in Jones County Georgia in 1811 was the Robert Alexander Fleming family, at least according to records of land ownership. Living next door was the Willis family of which Thomas Willis was a member, however, he can't be accounted for as a member of the next door family. It is more likely that Thomas Willis was a member of the extended Willis family . Subsequently, Julia Anna and Thomas Willis migrated to the Henry County, AL neighborhood of John Fleming by the 1830s. According to the War of 1812 application, The Willis family left Henry, AL in 1841 after their home "burnt." They are found living next to the James Fleming's three sons and James Fleming 1818, a lifelong companion to her son, Thomas Jacob Willis, in Clarke, MS in the 1850 federal census. By 1860, the Willis family and the family of James Fleming 1818 moved to Hancock, MS, where they remained and are buried today.

DNA

As a result of Ancestry.com's "Thru Lines," it appears that several of Julia Anna's children before and after her marriage to Thomas Willis share autosomal DNA with John Calvin Fleming, Jr. Living descendants of Julia Anna's siblings share approximately 6 cM (1 segment) on average, which is the same as descendants of Julia Anna. One can infer that Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis was born as a Fleming and likely daughter of James Fleming.

There is more to be considered about James Alexander Fleming 1818 Twiggs GA. He behaved in every way as a son to Julia Anna {Fleming} Willis and a brother to her son, Thomas Jacob Willis. He moved to Henry, AL by 1840 and joined the James Fleming 1760 MD family in Clarke, MS by 1850. However, his genetic relationship with the James Fleming 1760 MD family is unknown. In fact his living male patrilineal descendants do not match the James Fleming 1760 MD patrilineal descendants. The most logical relationship of James Alexander Fleming to this Fleming family is he was likely biologically born to Julia Anna {Fleming} Willis and her husband, Thomas Willis.

This mystery was partially solved when James Edward Fleming, son of Roosevelt Fleming and patrilineal male descendant of James Alexander Fleming 1818, underwent a repeat yDNA test from Family Tree DNA, with the results reported on February 5, 2020. The report confirmed that no known yDNA Fleming genetic line matched to James Edward Fleming. His haplogroup was reconfirmed at E-M35 which is consistent with his haplogroup findings on the previous Relative Genetics test over a decade before. Most importantly it reveals that most yDNA matches are with males of the Willis surname. In fact one cohort matches 100% out of 111 markers. So, it is clear that James Alexander Fleming 1818 GA was fathered by a Willis male of the Thomas Willis family. In fact, Thomas Willis may well have been his father. Based on birth dates and family relationships, the highest probability is that Thomas Willis was his father. Why he was given the Fleming surname is undetermined and quite a mystery. He appeared to have a close relationship with Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis and she was most likely his mother. However, he could have been born of one of her daughters as well. Autosomal DNA results from Ancesty.com Thru Lines indicates that Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis was a biological member of the Fleming family and most likely was the biological daughter or much younger sister of James Fleming 1760 MD.

Ancestry details on the life of Julia Anna (Fleming) Willis