The following is a result of research I have been doing on the last name Hodgson in the Western Caribbean area, mainly from Belize to Panama passing thru the north of Honduras, the Bay Islands of Honduras, the East Coast of Nicaragua and the East Coast of Costa Rica down to Bocas del Toro, Panama, and the San Andres Islands. There is colorful history of two Hodgsons. The first one came from England to Jamaica as a Captain Robert Hodgson. From here he was commissioned by the British Government as Superintendent of the Mosquito Shore (which covered the East Coast of Honduras thru Nicaragua down to Costa Rica and ending at Bocas del Toro, Panama). He arrived in 1745 or 1749 at Black River in Honduras. Robert Hodgson is said to have died in Bluefields, now part of Nicaragua, but there is no evidence of a tomb.

Captain Robert Hodgson had a son named Robert Hodgson the Younger who had about 3 children: William Pitt Hodgson, Alexander Hodgson and Martha Hodgson who married a minister of the Anglican Church. There is a tombstone some place in Great Britain (England perhaps) with her name stating she is the daughter of the late Colonel Robert Hodgson the Younger).

Like his father, Robert Hodgson the Younger was also a superintendent of the same Mosquito Shore. The younger Hodgson died in Leon Nicaragua and as he was considered a protestant he was buried in non-Catholic cemetery, which cannot be located now because it has been built over with houses.

What happened to Robert Hodgson's sons is unknown. We do know that William had about 144 slaves on the Corn Islands and he had descendants with native Americans (Indians) and with black women. As all the documents for this period from 1780 to 1850 have disappeared in the Bluefields area, there may be something at the Public Record Office in London. I gathered reports from the main oral historian of the area who has also passed away. His name was Willy Shepherd, and he states that his mother related to him that there was a George Hodgson, possibly related to the Robert Hodgsons, who came to this area and had a child also George.

This second George had about 24 children with different women, native Americans who intermarried so that today there is large population of Hodgsons in the area. In fact there are 2 trends, one consider themselves to be 'true' Hodgsons descendants of the original settler, and the others are the 'false' Hodgsons, that is to say, the ex-slaves who assumed the name of Hodgson. Hodgsons on both sides of the spectrum have been mayors, political and military leaders, businessmen, medical doctors, civil engineers, and so on. They are mixed, some native Americans and some blacks also known as black creoles and some white creoles.

This bit of history, Hodgsons of the Caribbean, has documentation for the 1700s, for the 1800s it is based more on oral history, and for the 1900s more documentation. If you have any historical, genealogical links to these people I would be happy to hear from you. In fact, a relative of Captain Robert Hodgson (the father) came to the USA, I believe to Virginia but that is another research project. I hope to share with you a copy of further research of mine in future.

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