JAMES HENRY HODGE ESQ.

(1784-1833)

James, son of Henry Hodge(s) and Catherine Bryant, was born was circa 1784 in the Scotland Neck - Kehukey Creek area of Halifax County,   North Carolina. James and his brother Allen, schooled as lawyers, conducted their father Henry’s affairs quite extensively in Livingston County as well as North Carolina as shown by early records. Both boys appeared quiet close and practiced their trade at the early courthouse in Salem. Henry was not a well-educated man as he left only his mark on early records. He did ensure that all his children had a good education as apparent by his two sons James and Allen; both very promising attorney’s in the early court history of Livingston County.

James first started practicing before the bar at the county courthouse in Salem. He made numerous land transactions and estate settlements from March 1815 to November 1830 in Livingston County. One that is probably the most notable was the will of his father in March of 1818. James, who kept a tavern in his home, also served as a deputy under Sheriff Robert Kirk. James along with Thomas Champion and   brother-in-law Christopher “Squire Kit” Haynes were the three deputies of Sheriff Kirk. This must have been a very powerful position during that time because his brother-in-law, Christopher Haynes, had resigned his position as magistrate in 1811 to become a deputy under Kirk. On April 12, 1812 James was bought before the court at Salem on a charge of bastardly. The charge stated that he was the father of an infant boy born on January 23 of that year by Polly Craft, daughter of Jacob Craft. He was ordered by the court to pay her $20 annually for five years for maintence of the child. The Craft family soon after departed Kentucky and moved to Union County, Illinois. Also in 1812 he   was listed as the bondsman in the marriage of Washington A. Griffin and Lucy B. Lewis (sister of Lilbourne Lewis and niece of President Thomas Jefferson). In 1821 he   was listed as bondsman in the marriage of Robert N. Campbell and Sally Holt. He was also named in several other marriages in Livingston County, but this one does question a relationship. “Hugh and Elizabeth Campbell of Montgomery Co., Tn. convey to their daughter Sally A. Throckmorton, late Sally A. Campbell, widow of their son Robt. N. Campbell, of Livingston Co., all their right, title, interest to what was allotted Sally in the estate of their son or which she holds as her dower, to wit, Negro woman Rachael and her child Maria and their increase; also Negro girl Jane and her increase and a boy named John, also part of Sally’s dower. If Sally has children, Negroes to pass to them at Sally’s death. If she has no children, Negroes to revert to heirs of Hugh Campbell. Signed: Hugh Campbell and Elizabeth Campbell. Test: Jas Barrett, P.C. Holt. Recorded 18 February 1824” [Livingston County Deed Book AA, page 222]. In the 1820 Montgomery County, Tennessee census Hugh Campbell was listed as age 45 and up. In the 1830 Montgomery County census he was listed as age 60 to 70 (born circa 1760-1770).

In 1810 James appointed his brother Allen to serve as his attorney to collect from the estate of their uncle Thomas Hodges Esq. in Edgecombe Co., North Carolina. His Uncle Thomas, who had married Sarah Sessums, had died in Edgecombe in 1806. Thomas had left a large estate and there was apparent infighting between siblings. Henry had apparently asked his sons to intervene in his brother’s estate and attempt to clear up the rivalry especially with Starling, husband of Elizabeth (Hodges) Diggs. Starling Diggs was Thomas’s son-in-law and also a lawyer from Edgecombe. Starling was very disliked by Thomas as evident by his will. Since Henry and Thomas did business together in Edgecombe, Nash, Pitt and Halifax counties, its quiet possible that Henry was attempting to collect what money was owe to him from these transactions. Henry was also raising William Digges, son of Starling and Elizabeth, in Kentucky. Thomas Hamm, a descendant of Thomas and Sarah, has compiled a wealth of information on this family.

On July 12, 1812 James married Mary J.W. Campbell. She may have been the sister of Sarah Campbell, the first wife of James’ brother Allen. It is believed by another family reseacher,   John Earl Spencer, that   Charles Campbell was the father of these two girls.   Charles Campbell   was living near Robert Hodge Sr. and Christopher Haynes   near Salem in the 1810 census, but had moved to Robinson Parish (Bayou Creek) by the 1820 census and lists age 45 and up. It could be that this Charles Campbell was indeed the father of Mary Campbell that married James Hodge, but I believe that Hugh Campbell of Montgomery County, Tennessee that was mentioned earlier was her father.  

From my personal research and deduction, Hugh and Elizabeth Campbell were the parents of Robert N., Mary and Sarah. The Charles Campbell listed in the early census and land transactions of Livingston County was his brother. These Campbell's were probably the sons of Robert Campbell and uncles to Judge James Campbell (son of RW soldier James Campbell of Rockbridge County, Virginia) that practiced law at Salem during the infancy of the county court. The P. C. Holt named as the attorney in the Robert N. Campbell Estate as the guardian of James and Mary (Campbell) Hodge's daughter Mary Susan. P.C. Holt was most likely the brother, father or uncle of Robert Campbell's widow Sally Holt. He, Peter C. [Campbell] Holt, would later move to Union County, Kentucky where we find children Mary Susan and Dr. Peter H. Hodge. Hugh Campbell was living next to William L. Williams in Tenessee and the relationship to James Lawrence Hodge’s children who lived with Benjamin Williams in 1870 may also connect here. James Hodge Esq. was appointed the guardian of Susan and William Williams, children of Henry Williams (1769-1811) and was the attorney in the division of his estate in 1823 in Livingston County.

James and Mary lived for a short period at Bayou Creek as records indicate that their daughter Juliana was born there in 1812. On March 3, 1815 he and Thomas Barnes bought lot# 25 in Salem for $25 from James and Thomas Frazier. He was listed in the 1817 Livingston County Tax List living near his father Henry and brothers Robert, Thomas, Henry Jr, and Allen. In 1817 he was shown owning 140 acres along Claylike Creek, but by 1818 he had sold all but 20 acres of that property. In February of 1818 he bought 3 ¼ acres from John Puckett and another 13 acres near Salem from Thomas Barnes. In 1820 he sold the 20 acres on Claylick Creek and has bought 30 acres on Sandy Creek (west of Salem) and was enumerated in the 1820 census living in Salem. On January 8, 1827 James and his wife Mary J.W. Hodge, “Mary Hodge relinquished right of dower”, sold 60 acres near the road from Salem to Golconda to Woodson H. Bryant for $20.

During their short life together, James and Mary had the following known children: Julia Ann, James Lawrence, Hugh Campbell, Mary Susan, Peter H. and Alphonso. In the 1830 census   at the township of Salem, Livingston County, Kentucky: 1 male under five, 1 male   five   under ten, 1 male   ten   under fifteen, 2 males   twenty under thirty, 1 male   thirty under forty, 1 male forty under fifty,   1 female five under ten, 1 female ten under fifteen, 1 female fifteen under twenty and 1   female thirty under forty. James died intestate after June 1833, presumably during the “1833 Cholera Ephdemic”. His estate inventory was entered into the court records on March 22, 1834   at Paducah,   McCracken Co., Ky. by his son-in-law   Archibald Dancy Coffield. His wife Mary died prior to the 1836 marriage of their daughter Mary Susan and may very well have also died during this epidemic.

Julia Ann “Juliana” Hodge, the first known child of James and Mary, was born November 12, 1812 near Bayou (Bio) Creek in Livingston County, Kentucky. Her first marriage was on November 10, 1830 in Livingston County to Archibald Dancy Coffield. Consent was giving by her father “On application of Mr. A.D. Coffield to you for licens to mary my daughter, you will please to grant them.”- signed James Hodge. Archibald was the son of Benjamin Coffield and Sarah "Sallie" Dancy   (Liv. Co. Ky. Will dated 21 Nov 1815). It is believed that his mother Sarah was the daughter of Archibald Dancy of Edgecombe County, North Carolina. Benjamin’s parents were Gresham Coffield and Patience Sessums of Edgecombe County, North Carolina. Patience and Sarah, wife of Thomas Hodges Esq., were sisters. Also, Julia’s Uncle William Hodge had married Nancy Dancy, daughter of Archibald Dancy and Hannah Sessums of Edgecombe. The Hodges and Sessums had intermingled quite frequently in Edgecombe and apparently their descendants were going so in Livingston. On Oct 20, 1817, William Hodge was allowed $39 for taking care of Sarah Coffield, widow of Benjamin Coffield [Co. Ct. Order Bk. F]. Julia and Archibald had the following children: Mary Jane, Caroline W., Marshall Dancy and Campbell Hodge. Soon after his death in 1849 she married James Logan Rutter. Both the Rutter and Coffield families were early settlers of Livingston County and migrated from Edgecombe and Halifax Counties, North Carolina with the Hodges. Her second husband James, who was previously married to Jane Myrick, was the son of James L. Rutter (county surveyor) and Catherine “Catron” Patterson. James’ sister Sally married Henry H. Hodge (fourth child of Robert Hodge Sr. and Nelly Northern) in 1823 and his sister Betsy married Joseph Newman (future in-laws of Alphonso Hodge) also in 1823. His Aunt Lettie (Letetia) Rutter married Lilbourne Lewis in 1810; Aunt Sally Rutter was married to William Rice (their daughter Elizabeth Rice was 2^nd wife of Blount Hodge); Aunt Polly Rutter was married to a Rogers and Aunt Peggy Rutter was married to a Ray. James owned a farm between Hampton and Lola, which he farmed until his death in 1855. Julia and James had two known children:   Susan Ann and James Hodge Rutter.

After James’ death Julia, with the help of her daughter Mary, continued to run the farm. Around 1862, she along with her daughter Susan Rutter; son Marshall Dancy Coffield; daughter Mary (Coffield) Dixon and son-in-law George Dixon, moved to Evansville, Indiana. They lived on Upper 1^st Street near Julia’s first cousin Fidelio Hodge (see descendants of Thomas Hodge and Harriet Barnes). George and Marshall worked at K.H. Boots and Shoes in Evansville. Sometime around 1875, her son Marshall left Evansville and moved to Marion where he married Lula Barnes. Marshall and Lula had only one child named Mary Hodge. She married Harry Kuykendall and resided in Marion until her death in 1974. Julia (Hodge) Rutter remained in Evansville with her daughter Mary. While in Evansville her daughter Sue married Harry Dexter. Sue and Harry had one child named Irene, who later married Dr. Charles Clayton and moved to Marshall County. Sue divorced Harry and by 1880 she and her daughter Irene, where back in Livingston County living with her brother James. While living with her brother James, she met and married Robert Campbell Robinson. By 1900 Julia was back in Livingston County and living with Sue and Robert. Julia died at the household of her daughter Sue in 1903.

Her children Callie, Cam, and James had stayed on in Livingston when she moved to Evansville. Juliana and Archibald’s daughter, Caroline “Callie” Coffield, married Jesse Patterson Newman in 1853. Jesse was the son of Joseph Newman and Betsy Rutter and a brother to Elizabeth Newman, first wife of Dr. Alphonso Hodge. His mother Betsy was the sister of Juliana’s second husband James Logan Rutter. Callie and Jesse Newman had six children: Mary, Bettie, George, Julia, Gip (Gipson) and Benjamin. They resided in Livingston County until their deaths in the late 1800’s.

In 1871 Julia’s sons James and Cam married their second cousins, the Olive sisters. James married Belle and Campbell “Cam” married Leona “Lone” Olive. Belle and Lone were the daughters of Jesse Olive Sr. and Barbara Ann Gray.   It should be noted that Jesse Olive Sr. was the son of Richard Olive and Evaline Rutter (daughter of James Rutter). Also, Barbara Ann Gray was the daughter of Presley C. Gray and Marina B. Hodge (aunt to Julia Ann Hodge). In 1876 James and Belle (Olive) Rutter moved from their farm in Livingston to Marion where James opened a grocery store. This venture lasted for about eighteen months when he moved back to Livingston County and returned to farming. In the fall of 1881 James opened a general mercantile store at Hampton, which he ran for several years. James and Belle had the following children: Maude, Henry, Jesse, Fannie, Louis, James Oliver, Robert, Barbara Ann and Julianna. Campbell “Cam” Coffield owned a farmed in Livingston County in the Dyer Hill precinct, near Hampton. Cam and Lone had the following children: Lula, William Olive, Hugh Campbell, Anna and Mary Varnie.  

James Lawrence Hodge , the second child, was born in Livingston County on his father’s farm near Claylick Creek in 1816. He moved to Smithland sometime prior to 1840 and soon afterward formed a mercantile business with his brother H.C. On October 6, 1840, at Smithland, he married Miss Sarah J. Sanders. “Louisville Sept 19^th 1840…The Clerk…of Livingston County will please to issue license for the marriage of Sarah J. Sanders my ward to Mr. Jas. L. Hodge & oblige.”- signed Danl. E. Jones. The marriage was performed by James C. Leech who was the Justice of the Peace for Smithland. Sarah Jones Sanders was the daughter of William 'Will" Sanders of Bullitt County and Lucinda Jones of Jefferson County. Her paternal grandparents were Christian James Sanders and Rhoda Quertermous of Bullitt County. Her maternal grandparents were John Jones and unknown wife of Jefferson County.

In 1842 when the county seat was moved to Smithland, most of the business owners in Salem had already relocated there. Salem was land-locked and the nearest river port was at Pinckneyville. Salem was no longer the hub of Livingston County and had lost its grandeur. Smithland, on the other hand, had the advantage of being located where the Cumberland River flowed into the Ohio River. This was very advantageous for the movement of goods, especially corn (whiskey) and tobacco, by steamboat to Nashville, Natchez and New Orleans. He is listed in the 1840, 1850 and 1860 Livingston County Census.   In the 1842 Spring Term of the Livingston County Court, James Lawrence was given legal guardianship of Alphonso Hodge. The court record states that the “infant” was 12 years of age and a direct heir of James Hodge [Livingston County Court.Order Book I; dated 2 May 1842]. In the 1860 census, prior to his death and after the death of his first wife, he is listed as a merchant in Smithland with his   children Susan, William, Mary, Charles   and Mary. Also listed in the household was   Dr. John Lewis and Joseph Newman (merchants clerk). His second marriage was on September 10, 1860 in Smithland to Christiana E. Donakey. Bondsman for the marriage was Isaac Shelby and it was solemnized by the Rev. Rev. Charles H. Campbell with attending witnesses John D. McGoodwin and John Lewis. Christiana was born ca. 1833 in Livingston County and was the daughter of John S. and Rachel B. (Valentine) Donakey. After his death a year later, Christiana disappeared from county records and his four children do not resurface until some nine years later at Smith Mills, Henderson County, Kentucky in the household of Benjamin and Lucinda Williams.

During the Confederate army occupation of Smithland James Lawrence was paid $5.00 for work done on the commissary house. The  funds were approved and paid by Maj. J. E. McElsath, Assistant Quartermaster of the Confederate States Army, at Manchester, Kentucky on December 5, 1862 (13 months after his death).

                                 James Lawrence Hodge's headstone at the

                         Smithland Cemetery in Livingston County, Kentucky

Linn Thornley Hodge Sr., a descendant of James Lawrence Hodge, wrote in his book “From a Sharecropper's Son to Independence and his Descendant's of the Hodge Family” (1977), that James Lawrence was the son of William Hodge. He claimed that this William Hodge was the founder of “Hodge’s Mill”, later known as Hodgenville, Kentucky.   This has been proven to be untrue. One Robert Hodgen was the founder of Hodgen’s Mill, later known as Hodgenville, and the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. He also claimed that James Lawrence had a heart attack and died the day the steamboat came and delivered news of President Abraham Lincoln’s death in 1865. This is also untrue. A quick stroll through the cemetery at Smithland, where he is buried, reveals on his headstone that he died in 1861. He did indeed build a two-story home near Blount Hodge in Smithland. The records at Smithland verify this much of the story.

There is a story mentioned by descendants of Alphonso Hodge that the father of Dr. Peter H. and Dr. Alphonso immigrated to America from Scotland. This Peter H. Hodge Sr. was suppose to have been married to a Mary and was also a doctor. This Dr. Peter H. Hodge Sr. and Mary had, according to this story, the following children: Peter H. Jr., Alphonso, John, Mary and Nancy. There is no proof that this Dr. Peter H. Hodge Sr. ever existed or for that matter ever lived in Livingston County or practiced medicine, but as family stories go, some truth is always hidden in them. Stephen McAllister, a descendant, has bought to life this family with his unique website. It is posted with many early pictures and narratives about the Hodge family.

His children:

James Hodge was born January 9, 1842 at Smithland, Livingston County, Kentucky and died the following year on August 21, 1843. This information was obtained from Stephen McAllister who is in possession of the family bible.

William S. Hodge was born May 1844 at Smithland, Livingston County, Kentucky and died at his sister’s home on October 26, 1906 in Union County, Kentucky.

Susan Jan “Jennie” Hodge was born December 18, 1846 at Smithland, Livingston County, Kentucky. She married William F. Williams on November 3, 1870 in Henderson County, Kentucky. William was the son of Benjamin and Charlotte (Ferry) Williams. Jennie and William had the following children: Walter, Lucy, Charles William, Henry Lawrence, Mary Elizabeth, and Robert Lucius. Jennie died June 4, 1905 in Marshall County, Kentucky.

Mary Lawrence “Mollie” Hodge was born March 19, 1850 at Smithland, Livingston County, Kentucky. She married William H. Abbott who ran a retail grocery in Louisville, Kentucky. They had three children but only two are known: Robert H. and Jennie A. They moved to Birmingham, Alabama sometime around 1900 where Mollie died on May 9, 1914.

Lucy Hodge was born May 27, 1852 at Smithland, Livingston County, Kentucky. She married in 1878 to Robert Lucius Rowley. Lucy and Robert had the following children: Minnie Davis, Kenneth Hodge, and Robert Emmet. She died December 6, 1932 and is buried at the Fairlawn Cemetery in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.    

Charles Edward “Charlie” Hodge was born June 27, 1854 at Smithland, Livingston County, Kentucky. His first marriage was in Henderson County, Kentucky on June 29, 1876 to Annie Belle Shaffer. They had the following children: Lawrence, William Henry, Ruby, Julia F., Linn Thornley, John H., and Gordon Dixon. His second marriage was to a Mrs. America A. Dilback nee Monroe. No known children to this marriage. Charlie died December 26, 1949 in Redland, California. He was bought back to Kentucky and buried at the Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield.

                                                           Charles Edward Hodge

                                                            Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield, Ky.

Julia Ann Hodge was born December 27, 1857 at Smithland, Livingston County, Kentucky. She married James Alexander Rowley in Shawneetown, Gallatin County, Illinois on February 2, 1874. Julia and James had the following children: Cora Lee, Norman Arthur, James Leonard, Glover Cleveland, Mary Ann and Julia Etta. Julia Ann died April 30, 1947 and is buried at the Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield.

                                                        Julia Hodge Rowley

                                                            Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield, Ky.

Reverend Hugh Campbell “H.C.” Hodge Sr., the third known child of James and Mary, was born February 1819 at Salem. H.C’s first marriage was to Emily Given. It is believed that she was the daughter of Dickson Given and his wife Nancy who are buried next to James Lawrence Hodge in the Smithland Cemetery. James Campbell Esq. was named the the administrator of the estate of Dickson Given dec'd and guardian for Kitty, Emily and Augustus Given, heirs of Dickson Given in 1833. H.C. and Emily were married prior to the 1840 census. He and his wife were listed living at Salem in the 1840 census, but very soon afterward moved to Smithland and formed a merchandising firm with his brother James Lawrence. In the 1850 census Richard Haydock is listed living in H.C’s household as a clerk. Richard Haydock married Elizabeth Watts in 1852. She was the daughter of Joseph Watts, and H.C’s second cousin, Lucinda D. Haynes (see descendants of Sarah “Sary” Hodge). Richard Haydock also appears with David B. Sanders in the marriage of Amzi Leech and Bettie Haydock, daughter of Richard and Elizabeth (Watts) Haydock. This David B. Sanders also appears as the bride man in the marriage of Sarah Jones Sanders and James Lawrence Hodge. The Rev. Collin Hodge performed this marriage. As shown, in this rural frontier it doesn’t take long for everyone to be related.

H.C and other Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Smithland was deeded ½ lot facing Mill Street to build a church. The Livingston County Court had used the original Methodist Church until the courthouse was completed in 1844. The town Trustees, John Webb, William C. Watts, Blount Hodge, W.H. Simpson, John Ellis and Walter Burns, deeded the lot to the Methodist Trustees on July 6, 1848 for the purpose of building a “Church and Seminary of learning”. H.C. and Blount were first cousins and both were active in community affairs. H.C’s bother James Lawrence, who married Sarah Jones Sanders, also lived near Blount until his death at Smithland in 1861.

H.C. was listed as the bondsman in several marriages in Livingston County, but no record has been found showing that he performed any marriages. The last recorded marriage that he participated in as bondsman was on May 19, 1850. This was the marriage of Henry W. Wood and Lavinia Coffield. He was listed in the Livingston County 1850 Slave Schedule as H.C. Hodge and in the regular census as “Camel Hodge”. In 1850 his first child Mary C. was born in Smithland. H.C. was in the mercantile business with his brother James Lawrence until around 1853. In the following year his son H.C. Jr. was born in New Jersey and by 1856 he was in Missouri where his third child Lucy was born. His wife Emily died soon after Lucy’s birth. Hugh’s second marriage was to Ella Van Allen in October 1857 at Saint Louis, Missouri. H.C. and Ella moved from St. Louis to Hamilton, Hancock County, Illinois prior to the 1860 census. While in Hamilton, Illinois he worked as a grocery store clerk and the following children were born: John M., Adaline P., James Van Allen, William K., Ella, Alfred and an infant that lived only two weeks. H.C. and Ella moved across the Mississippi River to Keokuk, Iowa sometime after the 1870 census and opened up a grocery store. The store, H.C. Hodge & Son at 421 Main Street, was listed in the Iowa Gazetteer and Business Directory for the years 1884-1885. His son John was also listed in the directory with a shoe store at 429 Main Street. H.C. died July 5, 1907 in Keokuk. His son, H.C. Jr. who was also a minister, took over the business and ran it until his death in 1922.

His children:

Mary C. Hodge, the first child by his first wife Emily, was born circa 1850 in Smithland, Livingston County, Kentucky and was deceased prior to 1860.

Hugh Campbell Hodge Jr., the second child by first wife Emily, was born July 23, 1854 in New Jersey, He was   also a   minister and took over his father’s business which he ran until his death on December 17, 1922 in Keokuk, Iowa. He married Annette M. “Nettie” Crane in 1884. She was the daughter of Frank and Ellena (Burnett) Crane. Hugh Jr. and Nettie had six children: Ellazan, Hugh Crane, Helen Annette, James Brennan, J. Leroy and Thorton Lomax. He is buried at the Oakland Cemetery in Keokuk.

Lucy G. Hodge, the third child from first wife Emily, was born March 1856 in Saint Louis, Missouri. She married John Baptist Kindig, a music professor from Munich, Germany, in Keokuk, Lee County, Iowa on March 5, 1883. Lucy and John had the following children: Marie K, William Hodge, James V., Adaline, John Baptist Jr., Leo Kay, George Max and Emanual Manning.

John M. Hodge, first child from his second wife Ella, was born circa 1859 in Hamilton, Hancock   County, Illinois. He worked in his father’s retail store as a salesman. No further record.

Adaline P. Hodge, the second child from his second wife Ella, was born September 1861 in Hamilton, Hancock   County, Illinois. She married March 5, 1890 in Keokuk, Lee County, Iowa to Nathaniel A. Jones. They had the following children: Theresa J., Hodge Campbell and an infant that died young.

James Van Allen Hodge, the third child from his second wife, was born October 8, 1862 in Hamilton, Hancock   County, Illinois. He married Carrie Laubersheimer on June 23, 1897 in Keokuk, Lee County, Iowa. They had one child named Margaret. He ran a mercantile store in Keokuk until his death on January 28, 1904. The 1900 census states that he was born April 1864, but this in conflict with his headstone states that he was born October 8, 1862. He is buried in the Oakland Cemetery in Keokuk.

William K. “Willie” Hodge, the forth child from his second wife, was born June 1, 1865 in Hamilton, Hancock   County, Illinois. He married Nettie Valerie Shultz on April 9, 1894 in Keokuk, Lee County, Iowa. They had two children: John Roy and Nina Valerie. He died April 6, 1918 and is buried in the Oakland Cemetery in Keokuk.

Ella Hodge, the fifth child from his second wife, was born circa 1867 in Hamilton, Hancock   County, Illinois and died August 28, 1874. She is buried in the Oakland Cemetery in Keokuk, Iowa.

Alfred Hodge, the sixth child from his second wife, was born circa 1868 in Hamilton, Hancock   County, Illinois and is buried in the Oakland Cemetery in Keokuk, Lee County, Iowa.

Infant child that was born August 1873 in Keokuk, Lee County, Iowa   The infant lived for only two weeks and was buried in the Oakland Cemetery in Keokuk.

Mary Susan Hodge, fourth child of James and Mary (Campbell) Hodge, was born February 1822 at Salem, Livingston County, Kentucky. At the age of 13 she married Dr. John T. Berry of Uniontown, Union County, Kentucky. He was the son of Dr. John and Maria (Bell) Berry of Virginia. “Know all men by those present that we John T. Berry and Peter C. Holt are held and firmly bound unto this commonwealth of Kentucky in the pound sum of Fifty pounds current money to the payment after which will and shortly to be made to this said Commonwealth we bind counselors our heirs Executors and Administrators formally and severally firmly by those present sealed with our seal and dated 5^th day of October 1836. The Creators of this above obligation is such that whereas there is a marriage shortly intended between the above bound John T. Berry and Miss Susan M. Hodge ward of the above bound Peter C. Holt now if there be no lawful cause to obstruct said Marriage Then this obligation to be void otherwise to remain in full force and hereinto law. Signed James R. Appling Esquire, John T. Berry and Peter C. Holt”. [Union County, Kentucky Marriage Book Page 550]. “In abidance to and by virtue of License purchased from the office of the clerk of this County Court of Union County. Said Solemnizes the Rites of matrimony between the following persons are here unto annotated to the parties named:   October 5^th 1836 John T. Berry to Miss Susan M. Hodge. Given under my hand as a minister of said gospel in the Baptist Church this 10^th day of October 1836. Signed William Norison.”

In the 1850 and 1860 census her sister’s daughter, Mary Jane Coffield, was living in their household, she would later marry George Dixon and move to Evansville, Indiana. Mary Susan and John resided in Uniontown until 1869, when they moved to Camden County, Missouri, but subsequently moved to Carthage, where he practiced medicine. Mary and John had seven children: Norben C., Claude L., John J., Howell A., C.C. (died as a child) and two daughters who died young. John died sometime between 1892 and the 1900 census. Mary Susan died in her son Norben’s home in 1910.

Her children:

Dr. Norhoumee Courtney “Norben” Berry began the study of medicine under his father and uncle, Dr. J. William Berry. He later attended Jefferson College in Philadelphia, Pennsylsvania. After completing his education he returned home and in 1861 he enlisted with the Fourth Kentucky Infantry which was part of the First Kentucky “Orphan Brigade” (CSA) as their field surgeon. By the end of the war he was senior brigade surgeon of Turner’s Brigade, Gen. Lyon’s cavalry. He was with Gen. Forrest at Johnsonville. After nearly four years of service he returned home in 1865 and continued the practice of medicine with his father at Uniontown. In 1869 he married Mrs Sue B. Green who was the daughter of Payne Dixon. They had three children: Sudie C., Ernestine and William who died when he was seven months old. In 1871 he settled in West Plains, Howell County, Missouri and became one of the leading physicians of southwest Missouri. A detailed account on the life of Dr. Berry can be found in the book “Reminiscent History of the Ozark Region”. Published by the Goodspeed Brothers, Chicago, 1894 (Reprint 2005). Dr. Berry cared for his mother at his home until her death in 1910 and was the certifying (attending) physician on her death certificate. His wife Sue died in 1912 and two years later he died from a cerebral hemorrhage while in the Vernon County Hospital for chronic influenza.

John J. Berry served as a private in Company C, Fourth Kentucky Infantry, First Kentucky Orphan Brigade under Capt. J.M. Fitzhenry. The Fourth Kentucky Infantry was organized at Camp Burnett, Tennessee on Sept 13, 1861. The Company C was composed entirely from men of Union County. The First Brigade (Orphan Brigade) was organized at Bowling Green, Ky. on 28 October 1862. The history of the 4^th Kentucky Infantry is quiet colorful. They defeated the 46^th Ohio Infantry at (Shiloh) Pittsburgh Landing, Tennessee in April 1862.   At the end of July of 1862 the 4^th Infantry was detached and sent south of Vicksburg to Warrenton to block against any possible Union land attacks. The 4^th Kentucky would later fight at Murphyboro (1863) and at the Battle of Jonesboro (1864) when the Orphan Brigade opposed General Sherman’s “March to the sea” which marked the end of the Atlanta Campaign. John died sometime prior to 1892. No further record.

Claude L. Berry was living in Evansville, Indiana and working as a clerk in a telegraph office in 1870. In 1900 he is living in Marion, Jasper County, Missouri with his mother and lists his occupation as a stenographer. He died April 19, 1909 in Jasper County.

Belle and Rosa listed in the 1870 census in their brother Norben’s household, next door to their father and mother. Both daughters deceased before 1880.

Howell A. “Howard” Berry was born ca. 1848 in Union County, Kentucky. He is listed in the 1860 census at Uniontown (age 9). In the 1880 census at Carthage, Jasper County, Missouri he is listed in his father’s household (age 34, telegraph operator). In the 1900 census in Marion, Jasper County, Missouri he gives his name as Howard A. and date of birth as April 1860. He is listed in this same census with his mother and brother Claude and gives his occupation as a telegraph operator. In the 1910 census he (age 60) and his mother are living in Norben’s household in Koshkonong, Missouri. In the 1920 census he is listed as an inmate in the Jasper County Alms House (poor house) age 51. After his death in 1925 the informant at the poor house gives his age as 56 (66).

Dr. Peter H. Hodge, the fifth child, was born at Salem, Livingston County, Kentucky on December 22, 1823. It is believed by this researcher that he was named after Hon. Peter C. Holt, Esquire who was a fellow lawyer and close personal friend  of his father James.   After James and Mary's death   Peter Holt was appointed guardian of   their daughter Mary Susan. Peter Holt had moved to Union County by 1830 and may very well have had Peter and Alphonso in his household for a brief time.   Dr. Peter Hodge   married Martha S. Johnson, daughter of George Johnson, on February 26, 1845 in Union County, Kentucky. Attending the wedding was his brother James Lawrence Hodge. He attended 1 year of medical school in 1846 at the University of Louisville and was listed that following year in the Kentucky State Register as one of seven physicians practicing in Morganfield, Kentucky. Peter continued to practice medicine and perform surgeries in Union County until his early death on January 2, 1860 from consumption. Peter is buried at the Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield. He and Martha had the following known children: Mary Gipson, Lena, Nannie, and George Peter.

                                 Dr. Peter H. Hodge, M.D and wife Martha Johnson

                                                    Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield, Ky.

His children:

Mary Gipson “Gip” Hodge was born August 1847 or 1849 in Morganfield, Union County, Kentucky. She married Oliver “Ollie” Babcock of Evansville, Indiana. He was a brother to Elisha Babcock that promoted the Coronado Del Rio in San Diego at the turn of the last century. The Babcock’s were from an old New York railroad family and Ollie had served as a First Lieutenant in the 10^th Indiana Cavalry Regiment during the Civil War. Gip and Ollie had two children: Agnes and Mary. In 1880 she, Ollie, their two children and her mother were living in Evansville. In 1900 Mary, listed as a widow, was residing with her brother-in-law William D. Babcock in Los Angeles, California along with her daughter Mary. In 1910 she was residing with her sister-in-law in Los Angeles. She then resided for a short period of time in the 1920’s with her sister Lena in Los Angeles. She died at her daughter’s home in Bethel, Connecticut on September 19, 1926.

Lena Hodge was born August 1848 in Morganfield, Union Co., Kentucky. She married William Swearingen of Evansville, Indiana. They had one son named George. In the 1892 Evansville Directory she was listed as a saleswoman. In 1900 she was living in Pigeon Township, Evansville, Indiana and her cousin Mary (Coffield) Dixon was living in her household as a broader. She later moved to Los Angeles and lived with her sister Mary Gip for a brief period but returned to Evansville, Indiana where she died in 1926.

                                                 Lena Hodge Swearingen

                                                      Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield, Ky.

Nannie R. Hodge was born February 26, 1854 in Morganfield, Union County, Kentucky. She was a teacher and taught at the public school in Morganfield. She married George H. Marshall. They had five children that lived to adulthood: Henry, Lena, Ollie, Matt and Ann. They had one that died young. She died July 4, 1906 and is buried at the Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield.

                                    Nannie Hodge and husband George Marshall

                                                    Masonic Cemetery in Morganfield, Ky.

George Peter Hodge was born January 1855 in Morganfield, Union County, Kentucky and was affectionately known as “Fat George”. He married Virginia “Jennie” Wall and had two children; Martha and Samuel. Fat George lived with the family of Anderson Newton Hodge for twenty years. He died in 1925 at White County, Illinois.

                                   George Peter Hodge in center of photograph with 

                                              grandson George Miller on the left and son-in-law

                                                                  George Arnold on the right.

Dr. Alphonso Hodge , the youngest child, was born December 18, 1828 at Salem, Livingston County, Kentucky. He was one the most researched and yet one of the most mysterious member of any of the Livingston County Hodge Clan. Both his parents died when he was young and he was raised by the brother James Lawrence. His first marriage was to Elizabeth Newman, daughter of Joseph Newman and Betsy Rutter,   at Salem on August 18, 1853. The ceremony took place at the home of his brother-in-law James Logan Rutter, who was also the bondsman. His first cousin, the Rev. Collin Hodge, performed the marriage and present during this ceremony was Benjamin N. Harrison and his brother James Lawrence Hodge. The record states that he was 24 years and 8 months old, born and resided   near Salem .   She was age 18 and was also   born and resided near Salem. It is believed that Alphonso may have had two children by this marriage, but none are mentioned in the Livingston County birth records. John Earl Spencer, a descendant and family researcher, believes that Dr. Hodge may have attended medical school at the University of Tennessee in Nashville. On June 10, 1855 it was claimed that he destroyed a note in the amount of $450.00 signed by William M. Gray. He then asked William Gray to sign another note. He then attempted to collect on both notes. Two warrants for his arrest were issued and during the February 1861 term of the Livingston County Circuit Court the sheriff returned them as unserved. He most likely fled to Union Co., Kentucky and then to Evansville, Indiana where he had family.

Guardianship of Alphonso Hodge copied from   Livingston   County Court Order Book I, page 383, 2 May 1842,   and is also found   in Livingston County Estate Records 1799-1842. by Brenda Joyce Jerome