Henry Hulbert was born on January 12, 1867, in Kingston-upon-Hull, England. He served with the British Colonial Civil Service in the Malay States from 1884 to 1897, and immigrated to the United States in 1898. Hulbert enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps on March 28, 1898, and his first assignment was with the Marine Guard aboard the cruiser USS Philadelphia (C-4), from 1898 to 1902, during which time he participated in combat at Samoa in the Second Samoan Civil War in 1899. He became the first Marine ever to be promoted to the grade of Marine Gunner on March 24, 1917, having previously been promoted to Sergeant Major. Hulbert sailed to France in July 1917, and was assigned as a platoon leader with C Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, participating in the battles of Belleau Wood, Soissons, and Blanc Mont Ridge, and during this time he was commissioned a 1st Lt in the Marine Corps. He was killed in action at Blanc Mont Ridge on October 4, 1918, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

His Medal of Honor Citation reads:

For distinguished conduct in the presence of the enemy while serving with the Marine Guard, U.S.S. Philadelphia in action at Samoa, Philippine Islands, 1 April 1899.