Find out how popular the last name Hodgdon is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Hodgdon.

Hodgdon, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Hodgdon surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Hodgdon in America

Hodgdon is the 12760th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Hodgdon surname appeared 2,418 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Hodgdon.

We can also compare 2010 data for Hodgdon to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Hodgdon

The surname Hodgdon has its origins in England, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "hod," meaning hood or cowl, and "dun," meaning hill or down. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a hooded hill or a hill with a distinctive shape resembling a hood.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Hearth Tax Rolls of 1662, where a John Hodgdon is listed as a resident of Worcestershire. The Hodgdons were predominantly found in the West Midlands region of England, particularly in the counties of Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, and Herefordshire.

In the late 17th century, the Hodgdon surname made its way to the American colonies, with several immigrants bearing the name settling in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. One such early settler was William Hodgdon, who was born in England around 1640 and arrived in Kittery, Maine (then part of Massachusetts) in the 1670s.

The Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landholdings in England compiled in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the Hodgdon surname. However, it does mention several places that may have contributed to the name's development, such as Hoddington in Bedfordshire and Hoddesdon in Hertfordshire.

Among notable individuals with the Hodgdon surname throughout history are:

1. James Hodgdon (1744-1811), an American Revolutionary War soldier from New Hampshire.
2. Richard Hodgdon (1755-1829), an American militia officer and politician from Massachusetts.
3. Samuel Hodgdon (1794-1880), an American printer and publisher from Maine.
4. George Hodgdon (1822-1898), an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts.
5. Frederick Hodgdon (1858-1938), an American artist and illustrator known for his maritime paintings.

While the Hodgdon surname may not be as widespread as some others, it has a rich history rooted in the English countryside and has left its mark on both sides of the Atlantic through the contributions of its bearers over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Hodgdon

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Hodgdon.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Hodgdon was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Hodgdon has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Hodgdon was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Hodgdon, please contact us.

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