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Address By Judge James F. Crocker, Before Stonewall Camp, Confederate Veterans, Portsmouth, Va., June 18th, 1909.
James Gregory Hodges was born in
Portsmouth, Va., on the 25th day of December, 1828.
His father was
Gen. John Hodges.
Gen. Hodges was one of the most noted citizens of
Norfolk county for his high character, intelligence, wealth, social position and for his public services.
For a number of years he was a member of the county court.
He served in the General Assembly of
Virginia.
In the war of 1812 he, as captain, commanded a company attached to the Thirtieth regiment of the third requisition for the
State of Virginia, commanded by
Maj. Dempsey Veale, and mustered into the service of the
United States on the 26th of April, 1813, at the camp near
Fort Nelson, situated on what is known as the
Naval Hospital Point.
This regiment was engaged in the battle of
Craney Island.
He subsequently held the commission of colonel of the Seventh regiment of
Virginia in militia and later was elected on joint ballot of both houses of the General Assembly a brigadier general of the Ninth brigade in the fourth division of the militia of the
Commonwealth and commissioned by
Gov. John Tyler on the 7th day of January, 1826.
The mother of
James Gregory Hodges was
Jane Adelaide Gregory.
She was a descendant of the colonial clergyman,
John Gregorie, who was rector of
Nansemond county parish in 1680.
Her grandfather was
James Gregory, who married Patience
Godwin, the daughter of
Thomas Godwin and
Mary Godwin, his wife.
This
Thomas Godwin was a descendant of
Capt. Thomas Godwin, the original settler and ancestor of the Godwins of
Nansemond county, who was a member of the
House of Burgesses and the presiding justice of the county court of
Nansemond county for many years.
James Gregory was a vestryman of the upper parish, and afterwards, by a change of the boundaries of the parish, a vestryman of the
Suffolk parish of
Nansemond.
