Richard R. Hodges - Two Sons Names John

Started by Debbie Gambrell on Sunday, August 15, 2021
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Is it proven that Richard and his wife Sarah had two sons named John:

1) John Hodges

2) John Robert Hodges I

I know it did sometimes happen that families gave two sons the same name but it's always worth double checking to be sure. Sometimes one of them is incorrectly connected.

I'm confident about # 1 John Hodges because that's my line. I'm from his son Isom and have common DNA matching ancestors on that line in Ancestry ThruLines,. His line has also been confirmed for DAR purposes. I don't have any way to confirm # 2 John since I'm not his direct descendant and there are no sources provided for him, so anything anyone has to help clarify / correct would be appreciated.

I'm asking mainly because I was tracing a line and ran into my John's brother John and am unsure if that's a valid pathway to continue tracing.

Thanks.

With a birth date of 1736, "John Robert" is possible, though not usual for the time period. He might also be a "Robert" who was mistaken for a John - some primary documentation, if we can get it, ought to clear that up.

I agree.

Tabitha Little, Birth: 1746 - Beaufort Co., NC; Father: Thomas Little; Husband: John Robert Hodges, Sr.

5 Children: Howell Hodges, Robert Hodges, John Robert Hodges, Jr., William Henry Hodges (born 19 JUN 1770, Kingston, NC), and Julia Hodges

Disconnecting John Robert Hodges I as child of Richard Hodges & Ann Hodges


https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Hodges-388

"My Father William Henry Hodges told me and Willis that his Father, John R. Hodges was born on June 26, 1736 in England and he could not remember for sure who his (John R.'s) Father was but he thinks he remembers it was Joseph and that he was a rich man in England. My Father William Henry told me and Willis that his Father, John R. came to America before the Rev War and settled in the eastern part of North Carolina with two Brothers, William and Howell. They had been given land grant by the King of England, and though he (William Henry) was only 6 years old at the time of the beginning of the Revolution, he remembers that his Father and Uncle William were loyal to the King. There was some bad words between the Brothers, because Uncle Howell was for the revolution. My Father (John R.) And his brother William were called Torries and the other settlers treated them bad, so they hooked up their wagons and started for the Spanish Territory in Florida. They traveled in the waterways to cover their tracks and finally reached the east part of South Carolina.

My mother, Tabitha, who was a Little before she married Daddy, took sick with fever and died in S.C. Everyone was very sad and Daddy John never got over her death.

The blog here disagrees.

http://tobetsy.blogspot.com/2010/12/john-robert-hodges-1735-1810.html

John Robert Hodges, Sr. ( 1736-1810 )

John Robert Hodges, Sr. was the first child born to Richard and Sarah Hodges of North Carolina on June 26, 1736. The 1747 will of his father, Richard Hodges of Beaufort County, NC he inherited "one plantation of 400 acres on Chocowinity Bay" near Washington in Beaufort County, NC. He sold part of the property he had inherited in Beaufort County in 1756, the year he married Tabitha Little who was born in Beaufort Co., NC on March 17, 1744, daughter of Thomas Little (1700-1764). They married in Beaufort or Pitt Co. ( Pitt Co. was formed out of Beaufort County). He was a Revolutionary Soldier during the period from 1776 to 1781 and received a land grant for that service. In 1779 John Hodges of Washington County, NC (not GA) appointed his brother, Howell, as power of attorney and in 1780, Howell sold this land in Pitt Co, NC on the North side of the Tar River for John.

Thanks, Erica.

Well, it’s unsolved. The same will citation is seen for “brother” John, married to a totally different woman and with different kids, so I don’t feel comfortable disconnecting either from parents Richard & Sarah.

That's fine. There were some families back in the day who purposely named two sons the same name. I've read that was because they want to ensure the name carried on in case one son died. So this may be one of those cases. But it's always worth checking to be sure it's not just a bad connection. Thanks so much for your help on it.

Back to connections again after seeing this info on Ancestry, where is listed as Richard Branch Hodges and not Richard R. Hodges, but it addresses the confusion over his wife's name. Most Ancestry trees have his wife listed as Sarah Vann. Some have her listed as Sarah Vann Wilkins. One person suggested this possibility for the uncertainty of her name;

"Accounts vary wildly concerning Richard Hodge or Hodges and his wife (or wives) and children. Many show wife as Sarah Vann Wilkens... marriage dates range from 1720 to 1732, and places range from Isle of Wight County, Virginia to Bertie Co, North Carolina...! The names of the children seem to be listed fairly consistently, but then that could be because people have copied them over and over... ? I have done basically that, although some are better documented than others, and I have further speculated that there were two wives...one Sarah Vann and one Sarah Wilkins....I have absolutely no proof of this and it may very well be wrong, but it would explain why some marriage dates are 1720 or 1725 (which would corresponde well with the first two sons) and also shown as a marriage date is 1732 (which would be too late for the first two, but would be compatable with the very next son who was born abt 1732)... if anyone can help untangle this mess, please do."

and at least one tree does, in fact, show the two wives and their children:

Richard Branch Hodges
BIRTH: 1700 Isle of Wight County, Virginia, USA DIFFERENT

DEATH: 21 Nov 1751 Marlboro, South Carolina, United States

sources (6) records (5) photos (1)

Family Info

Father
Robert Hodges III (1675–1742)

Mother
Ann Brandt Branch (1680–1742)

Spouse
Sarah Vann (1693–1760)

Children
Sarah (1717–)
Henry (1720–1802)
John Ballentine (1720–1778)
John Robert (1728–1822)

Spouse
Sarah Wilkins (1713–1760)
Married 1732

Children
Lemuel (1733–)
Thomas (1736–1755)
Ann (1742–1835)
Howell (1742–1799)
Mary (1744–)
Sarah (1747–1806)
Isabell (1748–1802)

# Erica Howton

tagging you since you'd worked on this with me in the past.

I'm descended from John B. Hodges and had never known what the B. stood for. The tree I got this info from has him as John Ballentine and from what would appear to be his father's first marriage to Sarah Vann, judging by the birthdates of the chldren grouped under each wife.

When was John B. Hodges born? I don’t see him tagged to this discussion. As a rule of thumb, middle names in USA before 1800 seem to prove out as anachronistic additions by later descendants. For a southern fellow, “proof” could be a Bible record.

OK, I see the family listing:

Children
Sarah (1717–)
Henry (1720–1802)
John Ballentine (1720–1778)
John Robert (1728–1822)

And I totally would not believe any of those middle names. Too soon.

Keep in mind this: the signers of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 were mostly of this born 1720’s generation, and only 7 of them had middle names.

Yeah, I know, but people put them on profilesl anyway. His middle name wasn't the important part. The revelation was that his father likely had two wives both named Sarah - Sarah Vann had the the earlier group of children and Sarah Wilkins had the later group of children, which would explain the confusion of a wife some have listed as Sarah Vann Wlkins Hodges as if she were just one person.

That's why I didn't tag son John - I only mentioned him as a side note. I was trying to clarify the wife situation for his father.

Gotcha. Well, 2 Sarah wives getting mixed up is hardly unusual, and the point is logical. I would go ahead and set it up that way, even if lacking “proof.” Reason is simple. If it shakes out that they’re the same - merge. It’s much harder to separate later. I would probably put the maiden name in ? Unless / until you have records to support the entry. And in the meantime, you have a theory that fits facts.

Ok, I'll go ahead and work on that based on the information I shared. Thanks for looking it over.

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