Biographical Sketch of Hiram Hodges, Dent County, Missouri >From "History of Laclede, Camden, Dallas, Webster, Wright, Texas, Pulaski, Phelps and Dent Counties, Missouri" The Goodspeed Publishing Company, 1889. ********************************************************************** Hiram Hodges. Among the prominent and most successful farmers and stock raisers of Watkins township stands the name of Mr. Hodges, who was born in Ripley county, Ind., in 1820, being the son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Razor) Hodges, natives of Abbeville District, S. C., and grandson of Richard and Sarah F. Hodges, who emigrated from South Carolina to Kentucky, where they expected to find plenty of cheap land for their children, but were disappointed, and about two years later moved to Ripley county, Ind., where the grandparents passed the remain- der of their days. Samuel and Elizabeth (Razor) Hodges were reared and married in South Carolina, and about 1810 or 1812 they moved with Mr. Hodge's parents to Kentucky, and from there to Indiana. The father enlisted for the War of 1812, but peace was declared before he entered the service. He was justice of the peace in Indiana for many years, and about 1846 came to Missouri, settling in Dent county, where he died about 1873, at the age of eighty-four years and six months. His wife died in 1873, at the age of eighty-four years, six months and eleven days. They were members of the Baptist church. Her father, Peter Razor, was a Revolutionary soldier, and a native of Germany. Hiram Hodges is the sixth of eleven children, six sons and five daughters. He received a liberal education in the common schools of Indiana, and March 11, 1841, he married Miss Rhoda Ann, daughter of James B. and Eva Leeds. Mr. Leeds was born in New Jersey, where he lived until thirteen years of age, and then came with his parents to Ohio, where he was married about 1816. Later he removed to Ripley county, Ind., where he spent the rest of his life, engaged in tilling the soil. His wife was born in Virginia, and went to Ohio with her parents. By his marriage Mr. Hodges became the father of thirteen children, five sons and four daughters now living: Samuel, Benjamin M., Hiram L., Elizabeth, wife of W. H. Craig, of Shannon county; Ellen R., James J., Sarah J., wife of William R. Love; Helen M., wife of Jefferson Daugherty, and George W., an attorney. The same year of his marriage Mr. Hodges came to what is now Dent county, in Gladden Valley, where he improved a good farm, and a few years after he removed down the valley to what is now Shannon county. Here he lived in different parts of the county for a number of years, and in 1856 he returned to Dent county, settling on Pigeon Creek where he improved another good farm, and remained there until 1871. He then came to Salem, was for ten years engaged in merchandising at that place, and then returned to the farm, where he lived until 1884. He then moved to his present farm on Dry Fork, which consists of 332 acres of good farming land. Besides this he still owns his old farm of 400 acres, well improved, with about 260 acres under cultivation. He followed merchandising with success in Shannon county, hauling his goods from St. Louis with ox-teams, and soon after purchased a saw mill in Parker Hollow, and operated the same for many years, meeting with good success. He has been saw milling ever since, and now owns one near the head of Meramec. In 1870 he built a flour mill at Salem, which he and G. R. Kenamore operated with success for a short time, when Mr. Hodges sold out, but one year later purchased the entire mill, and afterward took W. R. Love as a partner. They then operated the mill until 1881, when they sold out. Mr. Hodges has given his children good educations, and has liberally contributed to all worthy enter- prises. Mr. Hodges was formerly a Whig, casting his first presidential vote for Harrison in 1840, but since the war he has affiliated with the Democratic party. He and wife have been faithful members of the Baptist Church for many years, and are excellent citizens. Mr. Hodges and eldest son now own a flour custom mill eight miles south of Salem, and Mr. Hodges has also a business block in Salem. He is a stockholder in the Bank of Salem. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: Joe Miller Penny (Eisenbarger) Harrell ====================================================================