The Hodgson Clan

Joseph Hodgson (1821-?) was born in Lancashire, England. On 5 November 1840 he married Mary Ann Prouse at the Waimate Mission Station Church in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand (source: marriage records). Family tradition has it that Joseph was the third son of a Lancashire Hodgson family that owned ships that traded stores out to the penal colonies in Australia. Joseph is thought to have served a veterinary apprenticeship in Lancashire, and travelled as an “adventure” on one of the family ships to Sydney. A side trip was made to New Zealand, to visit the Williams family at the Mission station. More information would be gratefully received. Submitted by Eric Stephens, gleneric@xtra.co.nz.

James Charles Hodgson (1855-?) was born in Manchester, England, where he attended the Quaker College in Pontefract. He went to Australia as a sailor on the Thunderbolt from 26 Mar 1878 to 17 Aug 1878. He settled in Berwick, Victoria, married Kate Fraser 13 Apr 1881 and then moved to Wellington, New Zealand. (Source: Dorothy Stumer, a descendant. dotstumer@yahoo.com.au.)

James Hodgson (1854-1929), was an importer and woolen merchant in Auckland, New Zealand. James came from a family of woolen merchants and manufacturers from Leeds, Yorkshire, England, and he had two brothers who remained in England. James Hodgson first came to Auckland, New Zealand in 1879 on the S.S. Ionic from London. (Source: Geoffrey Clark (clarkco@xtra.co.nz), who is seeking more information about this ancestor.)

Further information on the earliest Hodgsons to emigrate to New Zealand will be gratefully received and presented on this website.