Household #8: Hodges, R L¶

Back to the 1900 Census & Household Index

In the 1900 Barney census, R. L. Hodges headed a 10-person household. The table below preserves the exact names, relationships, ages, birthplaces, and occupations recorded for the household.

Household Snapshot¶

R. L. Hodges was listed in 1900 as a 64-year-old Georgia-born farmer. His household belongs to the farm economy around Barney, where land, crops, livestock, kin labor, and seasonal work still shaped daily life alongside the newer railroad town.

The 1900 household combined the older Hodges couple, three unmarried adult Hodges children, and the Culbreth son-in-law, daughter, and grandchildren. The page is a two-generation household record, with the Culbreth family already tied into the Hodges line through Effie V. Hodges Culbreth.

Every listed person in the household was reported as born in Georgia. Later records are still needed before claiming movement into or out of Barney for any individual member.

Newspaper and Public-Record Trail¶

• The Valdosta Times reported on 1 December 1900 that R. L. Hodges died suddenly during cane-stripping work on Tuesday, 27 November 1900. The item says he complained of being tired, rested on a fence, fell a few minutes later, and was found dead. That article supplies the contemporary newspaper context for the death date preserved in the family narrative below.
• A 2 January 1909 Valdosta Daily Times social note says Miss Hattie Hodges had returned to her home at Barney after visiting Miss Vesta Chambers in Valdosta. This is probably the Harriett Hodges listed in this 1900 household, but the notice itself gives only the shortened name and Barney residence, so it should remain a likely identification rather than a closed proof.

1900 Census Household¶

Children and Later Trails¶

This section is reserved for later-life child evidence. No later spouse, death, burial, obituary, probate, separate household, or descendant-line identification has been added here yet from direct records.

Family Narrative¶

• Head: R.L. Hodges (age 64, Georgia, USA, Farmer) — b. Jan 1836, GA
• Spouse: Mary J. (Stephens) Hodges (Wife, age 62, Georgia, USA) — b. ~1838, GA; m. Jan 22, 1861
• Children:
• John H. Hodges (Son, age 29) — b. ~1871, GA, Farm Laborer
• Harriett Hodges (Daughter, age 26) — b. ~1874, GA
• Joseph Hodges (Son, age 22) — b. ~1878, GA, Farm Laborer
• J.B. Culbreth (Son in law, age 33) — b. ~1867, GA, Saw Mill Laborer
• E.V. Culbreth (Daughter, age 30) — b. ~1870, GA; Effie V. Hodges; married Joseph B. Culbreth
• James Culbreth (Grandson, age 7) — b. ~1893, GA, born Barney
• Carrodine Culbreth (Grandson, age 5) — b. ~1895, GA, born Barney; name from Ancestry tree (Art Stewart)
• Bessie Culbreth (Granddaughter, age 1) — b. ~1899, GA, born Barney

Identity and family evidence: Robinson L. (Robert) Hodges

The family outline below draws on Huxford's History of Brooks County (pp. 484–485) and Find A Grave (Memorial 111611356). The James Carr–Robinson parentage link is strong probable; the earlier generations remain secondary-supported. Huxford lists him as “Robertson L.,” born in 1837, whereas the 1900 census records January 1836:

• Father: James Carr Hodges (b. Mar 18, 1800, Bulloch Co., GA — d. Jan 17, 1865, Brooks Co., GA); buried Hodges Cemetery, Brooks Co. (Find A Grave 106716862); Indian War veteran (Capt. Levi J. Knight's independent company, 1838); Captain of Militia, 659th district, commissioned Apr 22, 1844; lived on lot 552, 13th district, Brooks Co.
• Mother: Sarah Ann Newton (b. Jun 3, 1802 — d. Sep 18, 1893); daughter of George Newton; buried Hodges Cemetery (Find A Grave 106716833)
• Wife: Mary J. Stephens (m. Jan 22, 1861)

Parents' Birthplace: 1880 census records both father's and mother's birthplace as North Carolina.

Siblings: 1. James Lafayette "Fate" Hodges (b. 1829 — d. 1890) — moved to Florida 2. Sarah Adeline Hodges (b. 1832) — m. William Alfred Robeson; d. 1883 3. Joseph Jackson Hodges (b. Jan 15, 1836 — d. Jul 26, 1910) — prominent farmer, 3,000 acres, owned store/sawmill/gristmill/cotton gins; buried Hodges Cemetery (Find A Grave 106717207); m. Rachel Caroline Delk (Nov 11, 1866); 11 children 4. Mary C. Hodges (b. 1838 — d. 1926) — m. Tobias G. Robinson, May 28, 1857; buried Hodges Cemetery 5. Margaret Hodges (b. 1840) — m. J. Cobb 6. Martha A. "Mattie" Hodges (b. 1842 — d. 1924) — m. Berrien Beaty; buried Hodges Cemetery

Grandfather: Joseph Hodges (b. 1758) — married (1) Elenor Denmark; (2) Sarah Carr

Great-grandfather: Joshua Hodges (b. Oct 13, 1736, NC — d. Mar 13, 1809, Bulloch Co., GA) — Revolutionary War soldier; enlisted from Martin Co., NC under Capt. Kenneth McKenzie, 1780; granted land in Burke Co., GA for service; married Ann Raiford, 1756

Death: November 27, 1900, Brooks County, Georgia. A 1 December 1900 Valdosta Times item reports that he died suddenly during cane-stripping work after the 1900 census enumeration.

Burial: Find a Grave memorial 111611356 places Robinson at Camp Ground Cemetery, Mount Zion Church, near Morven, Brooks County, Georgia. Huxford’s family-cemetery statement on page 485 concerns Joseph J. Hodges and his wife, not Robinson; it supplies no conflicting burial location for Robinson.

Civic Roles: - Founding trustee, Barney Methodist Church (1899) — listed among early Barney settler families in Huxford

Notable Relatives: Brother Joseph J. Hodges was among the wealthiest farmers in northern Brooks County (Okapilco–Tallokas section); started with \$300 capital, accumulated 3,000 acres plus store, sawmill, gristmill, and cotton gins; stockholder in banks at Pavo and Quitman.

Culbreth Family: J.B. Culbreth (Joseph B. Culbreth, b. ~1867, Savannah, Chatham Co., GA) married Effie V. Hodges, daughter of R.L. and Mary J. Hodges. J.B. worked as a saw mill laborer in Barney. The Culbreth family was not established in Brooks County — no references in Huxford; left Barney District by 1910 (no Culbreth surname in 1910 census for Barney). Joseph B. Culbreth's parents are unknown (Ancestry tree says "Unknown"). The family likely came to Barney for saw mill work.

Effie V Hodges note: An unsourced Ancestry tree (Art Stewart's Ancestors 2025) links Effie to "Redding Othaniel Augustus Hodges Jr." (1837-1904, Sandersville, Washington Co., GA). This is incorrect — Redding Jr.'s family is entirely Washington County and unrelated to Brooks County. R.L. Hodges is Effie's actual father per the 1900 census (which lists her as "Daughter" in his household). The Ancestry tree likely conflated two different Effie Hodges from different branches.

1850 Census (Lowndes County, GA): Robertson Hodges, age 14, in household of James C Hodges (50) and Sarah A Hodges (47). Siblings: Lafayette (21), Adeline (18), Joseph J (15), Mary (12), Margaret (10), Martha (7). Robertson was attending school.

1860 Census (Brooks County, GA): Robinson L Hodges, age 24, farmer, still in father J.C. Hodges' household at Tallokas PO. Not yet married.

1860 Census — Wife's Family (Brooks County, GA): Mary J Stevens, age 18, in household of Cadar Stevens (53) and Levina Stevens (46). Siblings: Florida G, Richard C (16), Harriet A (14), Francis (6), Andrew (4), George F.

Marriage Certificate: Robinson Hodges married Mary J. Stephens on 22 January 1861 in Brooks County, Georgia. The Brooks County marriage-book return records this date; the license was issued January 18 and the return recorded January 30. Ancestry collections 7839 and 4766 index the marriage and are not independent original records. Some sources incorrectly state 1864.

1870 Census (Brooks County, GA): Robinson Hodges, age 34, farm laborer, Quitman PO. Household: Mary (30, wife), Thomas (8, son), Sarah (4, daughter), Mary (3, daughter).

1880 Census (Morven, Brooks County, GA): R.L. Hodges, age 44, farmer. Mary J. Hodges (41, wife). Children in household: Thomas J. (16), Sarah L. (14), Mary A. (12), James H. (10), Margarette E. (8), Harriet A. (6), Emma F. (4), Joseph E. (2), plus unnamed infant (~1880). Father's birthplace: North Carolina. Mother's birthplace: North Carolina.

1900 Census: R.L. Hodges (64, head, b. Jan 1836 GA), Mary J. (62, wife), John H (29, son), Harriett (26, daughter), Joseph E (22, son). R.L. was alive at enumeration (June 1, 1900) and died five months later.

1910 Census (Barney, Brooks County, GA): Mary J. Hodges, age 71, widowed, remained at Barney with daughters Maggie Cribb and Hattie Hodges, son-in-law John Cribb, and two Cribb granddaughters. A same-name LaGrange entry should not replace this household continuity.

Early-family evidence: Huxford's compiled genealogy places James Carr Hodges under Joseph Hodges and identifies Joseph and Nathaniel Hodges as sons of Joshua Hodges and Ann Raiford. That makes Nathan Hodges a collateral relative of this Barney branch, not Robinson's direct ancestor. The upper genealogy is secondary-supported because no inspected parent-naming original verifies the Joshua-to-Joseph-and-Nathaniel generation. James Carr to Robinson remains strong probable from the 1850 and 1860 household chain plus Huxford's explicit son statement.

Connections to Other Barney Families¶

• The page documents a direct Hodges-Culbreth connection inside HH#8: Effie V. Hodges, daughter of R. L. and Mary J. Hodges, was married to J. B. Culbreth, and their children James, Carrodine, and Bessie Culbreth were listed as Hodges grandchildren in the same household.
• No separate Culbreth household has been identified elsewhere in the 1900 Barney census list on the current page evidence.
• J. B. Culbreth may be related to Prof. B. H. Culbreth, the Barney school figure identified in 1901-1902 newspaper items, but proof of that relationship has not been found at this time.

Open Research Questions¶

• Parentage audit: confirm both parents of the household head for HH#8 through direct or near-direct records where possible; mark derivative-only parent links as unresolved until supported.
• Child census audit: confirm every child named in the 1900 household against later census, marriage, death, obituary, cemetery, probate, or draft records; separate proven child links from same-name candidates.
• Other household member audit: verify boarders, servants, in-laws, stepchildren, grandchildren, and unrelated residents in HH#8; document the exact relationship instead of assuming kinship.
• Spouse and marriage audit: locate marriage records, death records, divorce records, or later census records for spouses or absent spouses tied to this household.
• Direct image review: re-check the 1900 census image and any cited index-only sources before treating ages, relationships, birthplaces, or name spellings as final.

Research Status¶

• Status: Well-researched.
• Strengths: Census households, the January 22, 1861 marriage record, and the December 1, 1900 newspaper death report support the life narrative. Huxford and the cemetery memorial supply additional family and burial information.
• Remaining cautions: James Carr Hodges’s parentage of Robinson remains strong probable. The earlier generations are secondary-supported, and Camp Ground burial is attributed to the cemetery memorial rather than treated as independently verified here.

Sources¶

• Folks Huxford, The History of Brooks County, Georgia, 1858-1948, Robinson L. Hodges and Hodges family entries.
• 1850 U.S. census, Lowndes County, Georgia, James C. Hodges household, including Robertson Hodges.
• 1860 U.S. census, Brooks County, Georgia, J. C. Hodges household, including Robinson L. Hodges.
• 1860 U.S. census, Brooks County, Georgia, Cadar Stevens household, including Mary J. Stevens.
• Brooks County, Georgia, marriage record for Robinson Hodges and Mary J. Stephens, 22 Jan 1861.
• 1870 U.S. census, Brooks County, Georgia, Robinson Hodges household.
• 1880 U.S. census, Morven, Brooks County, Georgia, R. L. Hodges household.
• 1900 U.S. census, Barney Precinct, Brooks County, Georgia, R. L. Hodges household.
• The Valdosta Times, 1 Dec 1900, "Two Old Citizens Are Dead," R. L. Hodges death item.
• The Valdosta Times, 1901-1902 Barney school items identifying Prof. B. H. Culbreth.
• The Valdosta Daily Times, 2 Jan 1909, page 8, social note on Miss Hattie Hodges returning to her home at Barney after visiting Miss Vesta Chambers in Valdosta.
• 1910 U.S. census, Barney, Brooks County, Georgia, Mary J. Hodges and Cribb household.
• Find a Grave memorial 111611356, Robinson L. Hodges, Camp Ground Cemetery, Morven, Brooks County, Georgia.

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