The Hudson Family

The Hudson Family

Traced through VA, NC, SC

This passage contains both historical and genealogy information about our family traced through the Hudson line.

The descendant report is based upon the assumption that Henry Hudson I, the Alderman, is the first generation of the Hudson line, since he is the earliest known Hudson and his coat of arms was so closely related to the mark Richard Hudson I used on his livestock. Our family line is from Richard Hudson I.

For convenience, names of people in our direct descendant line are boldfaced. You may either click on the links in the Table of Contents to a particular section of interest, or scroll down the entire page.

This page was last updated September 19, 2002.

Hudsons in England

Immigration to America

Hudsons of Amelia (Richard Hudson III to Hall Hudson

The Move to North Carolina (Joakim Hudson)

During the Civil War

Sons of Jesse Hudson and Ann Coker (2nd Wife)

Sons of William Hudson and Elizabeth Galloway

Descendants of George Washington Hudson and Emma Hicks (1st Wife)

Eva Prudance Hudson

Thomas Bennie Hudson

Descendants of George Washington Hudson and Juanita Jennings (2nd Wife)

Admiral Dewey Hudson

Acknowledgements

Hudson Webring

Hudsons in England

Henry Hudson I is estimated to have lived between 1500 and 1555, although some historians believe he may have lived longer. Henry I is named in Queen Mary's Charter, February 6, 1555, as one of the founders of the Muscovy Company. He was an alderman in the City of London. It is believed that his wife was Barbara and that they had two children, William Hudson and Henry Hudson II, (b. 1541).

Tamworth Castle

Henry II was a wealthy Londoner of the aristocrat, a member of the Skinners and Tanners, and also owned property in Stourton, Lincolnshire. He was the father of Henry Hudson III, the explorer, and William Hudson (b. 1560). William Hudson married Alice Turner and they had several children, one of which was Richard Hudson I, who immigrated to America.

Richard Hudson I was born 1605 in Tamworth, Staffordshire, and christened in the Church of England November 5, 1608.

Immigration to America

At the age of 30, Richard I boarded the ship, Safety, on August 10, 1635 and sailed to Virginia, where he eventually settled in Accomack County. Richard's first wife is unknown, but he married a second time in 1638 to Mary Hayes. He owned land in Hungars Creek, one of the oldest settlements on the eastern shore. He was captain of his own ship, and in addition to land, his holdings included crops and livestock. His livestock was marked by a symbol associated with the Hudson coat of arms for Henry the Alderman. Richard married a third time to Barbara Jacob.

Hudsons of Amelia

Richard Hudson II, son of Richard I and probably his first wife, was born 1632 in Accomack County, Virginia. He migrated to Henrico County, Virginia where he settled on the south side of the James River and married Mary Bowman in 1658.

Existing Henrico County records indicate that Richard received a gift of land, known as "Roxdale", from his father-in-law. These records also refer to a Will of Richard Hudson II, made October 25, 1669. The Roxdale land was equally divided among his three sons, who all migrated to different counties in Virginia.

Richard Hudson III - Amelia County

Robert Hudson - Chesterfield County

William Hudson - Hanover County

Richard Hudson III was born about 1660 in Henrico County, Virginia and married Mary Hall. In 1706 Richard sold his share of the Roxdale Plantation to his brother, Robert Hudson, for 1600 pounds of tobacco and left the area. He settled his family at Hatcher's Run, in what later became Amelia County, Virginia.

The Move to North Carolina

Hall Hudson, son of Richard Hudson III, was born around 1700 in Amelia County, Virginia. He married his wife Elizabeth, in Nottoway Parish, Amelia County, Virginia. Several deed of land records exist where he gave gifts of land to his sons. His Will, dated March 13, 1778, names his children and the items each individual should have received at the time of his death about 1778.

Joakim Hudson (also known as Joachim), was the son of Hall Hudson, born Febuary 11, 1732/33 in Prince George County, Virginia. He moved to Anson County, North Carolina around 1777, in which he made his first land purchase September 24 of that year. His land was located along Richardson's Creek. In one deed dating the year of 1810, Joakim conveyed all of his land to his son William. Afterwards, he moved to Darlington County, South Carolina. We believe Joakim might have had two wives. His second wife was Sarah Hickson upon his death. Based upon a March 1818 bill of Partition from his widow Sarah Hickson Hudson regarding Joakim's estate, it appears that he and Sarah had no children. She is partitioning for a settlement based on an agreement she and Joakim made before his death for her children of a previous marriage. This partition is against the Hudson brothers: Elijah, Jesse, Jacob, William and Reuben, probably sons from his first marriage.

Jesse Hudson, son of Joakim Hudson, was born in Anson County, North Carolina and probably either moved with his father after 1810, or was already living in Darlington County, South Carolina when his elderly father re-located. His first wife was Elizabeth Oates, the daughter of Stephen Oates (b. 1764) and Ferreby Carraway. They moved from North Carolina to Darlington, SC where she met and married Jesse Hudson. They had three children before her death. Their eldest son, William Wesley Hudson is our direct ancestor.

Jesse Hudson's second wife was Ann Coker (b. 1806) and they had several children who were step-brothers and sisters to William Wesley Hudson. I have a copy of a handwritten deed from the Darlington Historical Commission, in which William Wesley Hudson signed over 700 acres of land to the heirs on the Coker side of the family. One of the signed witnesses was Caleb Coker, in which the deed was delivered.

During the Civil War

Sons of Jesse Hudson and Ann Coker

(The following was from a newsletter produced by the Darlington County Historical Commission)

Jesse Hudson settled on a small plantation east of Hartsville where the family belonged to Hartsville Baptist Church, which has since lost many historical records. However, its ancient cemetary reveals a wealth of history and one heart-breaking story of three Hudson brothers, the sons of Jesse and Ann. Of the Hudson brothers to die during the Civil War, the first was Thomas H. Hudson, killed in action during the battle of Seven Pines, Virginia. He was the oldest of the three brothers and unmarried. His epitaph read ...Christian virtues adorned his character, memorable among which was his devotion to his aging mother. As a soldier he was true and brave, encountering death in the defense of a cause he believed sacred and just...

Three weeks later, the second brother Jesse died in a hospital in Richmond, Virginia. Of the three brothers, Jesse was the only one married, leaving behind a young widow, Mary Catherine McIntosh. She also lost a brother and another brother-in-law who died in battle. Jesse's epitaph read...His short life was an honorable one. Beloved by his own family and brethren in the Church, and esteemed and respected by his comrades, his early death lamented by all who knew him...

Robert A. Hudson was the third brother to die in the cruel Civil War. A year before the war ended, he was mortally wounded in the Battle of Cold Harbor. He suffered for two days before he was laid to rest. His epitaph read ...Robert, thou are gone to rest. Thy toils and cares are o'er. And sorrow, pain, and suffering shall ne'er distress thee more...

All three Hudson brothers served together in the same outfit commanded by their first cousin, Captain James Lide Coker. The Coker family left its mark on the Darlington County area. Years later in 1908, Coker College, an independent liberal arts college was founded in Hartsville and named for the Coker family, and consistently, the James Lide Coker Library was named for the town's Civil War hero.

Sons of William Hudson and Elizabeth Galloway

William Wesley Hudson was born around 1812 and his wife Elizabeth Galloway was born in 1817. According to the 1860 SC Census right before the Civil War, William was a farmer in Darlington County, SC. He owned a good amount of real estate and personal property for that time. William's step-brother, James Hudson and his wife, Charlotte Hudson, lived with them. James was twenty-eight at this time, and attended school. William and Elizabeth had several children. Their two oldest sons fought in the Civil War with Jesse's younger sons. All of the Hudsons served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Between 1860 and 1870, William packed up the family and moved to Sumter, SC.

John Wesley Hudson

William and Elizabeth's eldest son, John Wesley Hudson, was born in 1837. During the Civil War, he was recruited by Captain James Culpeper on April 28, 1862. In september 1863, John fought with distinction in the Battle of Chickamauga as a member of "Culpeper's Battery". In 1919 he justifiably received a Confederate Pension, at the age of 82.

George Washington Hudson

George's military records were lost or destroyed. However, based on the recollections of his daughter, Eva Hudson Hancock, and activities of his brother John and bestfriend Richard Jennings, our family knows that George Washington Hudson served as a confederate in the Civil War. He mostly likely enlisted with his brother John at the age of sixteen. Ben Hudson has compiled a very detailed, written chronological report of the experiences of John and George Hudson as they served in Culpeper's Battery. For more information, please see the summary of Ben Hudson's report, "The Hudsons in Culpeper's Battery During the American Civil War".

George Washington Hudson (1846-1908)

Descendants of George Washington Hudson and Emma Levinia Hicks

George W. Hudson, son of William Wesley Hudson and Elizabeth Galloway, was born January 1846 in Darlington County, South Carolina. His first wife was Emma Levinia Hicks, born around 1854. They married when Emma was sixteen in 1869. In the 1880 census, George and Emma were listed has having five children. Their youngest child was born in 1887, but by 1894 George remarried, so Emma's death must have occurred prior to 1894. At this time, we know very little of Emma Levinia Hicks.

Eva Prudance Hudson

Eva P. Hudson (b. 1882), daughter of George Hudson and Emma Hicks, married James Lester Hancock (b. 1881) November 2, 1901 in Columbia, South Carolina. Eva is remembered by her family as a devout christian woman who lovingly raised eight children. To the grandchildren she was known as "Granny" or "Granny Hancock". She was a member of First Baptist Church of Rock Hill, SC.

James Lester Hancock grew up on a farm and began working for the Southern Railway as a clerk in September 1900. Within six months, he entered the Transportation Department as a Flagman and Brakeman. By 1905, he was promoted to the position of Conductor. He remained very active in community activities by serving as Deacon of the Blacksburg Baptist Church, one term on the Blacksburg town council, six years on the school board, and one of the promoters of a new high school building. In 1927, he moved the family from Blacksburg to Rock Hill, SC, where he built a new home at 301 Pendleton Street.

Eva Hudson with g-granddaughter, Jennifer Davison 1971

After her husband's death in 1935, Eva began receiving boarders in her home to make ends meet. She served meals every day at noon for five days a week. She cooked on an oil fired cooking stove and used a coal fired hot water heater. Following her death in 1979, the home her husband built and where she lived the majority of her life, was sold.

Thomas Bennie Hudson

Thomas Bennie Hudson, was my great-grandfather and he married Mary Sue Tomlinson when she was sixteen around 1909. He was known as "Papa" to the family and she was known as "Maimie". Papa went by his middle name "Bennie" and that is how he is listed in the 1920 SC Census. During this time they lived at 302 Spring Street, Lexington, SC. He is listed as a clerk, but the family says he owned a cafe. Papa loved to cook and my grandmother remembers his spendid dishes. She says he was a cook on a naval ship during during WWI. This is something I still need to verify.

Thomas Bennie Hudson (1886-1955)

Mary Sue Tomlinson (1893-1971)

Due to a streak of bad luck, Papa became convinced that he was cursed. Apparently, he was very supersitious. Papa told my grandfather that his mother, Emma Levinia Hicks, was full-blooded Cherokee. He said he didn't remember much of his natural mother. We have not been able to verify that Emma was indeed Cherokee, but it is a known fact that Papa's step-mother, Juanita Jennings was half-Indian, either Croatan or Cherokee. She helped raise Papa after his natural mother died. Maybe some of the Indian beliefs influenced his thinking. Whatever the reason, in 1933 he packed up the family and moved to Greensboro, North Carolina, supposedly to escape the curse.

When I began researching Papa's family history, all I had to go on was a few South Carolina census records and Papa's obituary. In it he was survived by brother Murray Hudson, of Flint, MI, and sisters Eva Hancock of Rock Hill, SC and Mary Newton of Waynesboro, GA. In the 1900 SC Census, Papa was listed with siblings Eva and Murray, living with George. W. Hudson and wife, Anita. No Mary was listed. However, in the 1880 SC Census there was a George W. Hudson and E. Levinia listed with five children, the youngest of whom was a Mary G. This made me wonder if the George W. Hudson in the 1900 census was the same as in the 1880 census. In the 1860 SC Census, George W. Hudson was listed as a child living with W. W. Hudson and wife Elizabeth in Darlington, SC. Immediately, I contacted the Darlington County Historical Commission with my information. They confirmed that George W. Hudson was the same person in all three census records. They also provided the name of another descendant from George and Juanita's line who had been researching the family history for several years. I wrote to him and he responded. To my delight, I soon began receiving a flood of information.

Thomas Bennie Hudson on left and brother Henry Murray Hudson on right.

My grandfather, Lee Thomas Hudson, son of Thomas Bennie Hudson and Mary Sue Tomlinson was born in 1912. For more information, see The Lee Hudson Family.

Tracing Cherokee Heritage

Tracing Native American heritage is very difficult.

First, if a Cherokee individual did not live on the reservation, then the Cherokee tribe considered them to have forfeited their citizenship and they were not included on the Cherokee census rolls. I've bought the Eastern band book entitled Cherokee Roots, which lists names of individuals living when several Cherokee census rolls were taken. Although, I cannot find a name that directly relates to our family, there are some Hudsons listed on both the Eastern and Western Cherokee rolls.

Second, if a Cherokee individual chose to remain in the east they had to abide by the state and federal government laws. In many cases, and especially in Georgia and South Carolina, Cherokees hid their heritage to survive and protect their children from the scorn of society. They changed their names to white-English names, so they could purchase land, work jobs, and send their children to decent schools. They did not hide their heritage out of embarrassment, but rather to keep their homes and to protect their children. Many Cherokee married white spouses. Their land was taken from them and sold to white people. If they managed to keep their land, their crops were burned and their livestock murdered. Many were forced to hide in the hills and mountains of Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

Some of these instances are valid reasons of why our own family might have covered our Cherokee heritage so well, that not even we know anything about it.

Descendants of George Washington Hudson and Juanita Jennings

At fifty years-old, George married his best friend's daughter when she was only sixteen -years-old on January 15, 1894. Juanita is listed as "Anita" on the 1900 SC Census. Her father was Richard Jennings and her mother was Mary Byrd. Mary Byrd was full-blooded Indian, either Croatan or Cherokee. George and Juanita had three children before his death in 1908. She eventually remarried to Edward Goldman.

Juanita Jennings

Admiral Dewey Hudson

Admiral went by his middle name "Dewey". Dewey was the oldest of three children by George Washington and Juanita Jennings. He was born in Sumter, SC in 1901.

Dewey married Jessie Elvira Hickman on April 26, 1919 in Charleston, SC. They had six children, one of which they lost at 13-years-old in a hayride accident. Her name was Mary Elvira Hudson and her photo is to the right.

Mary Elvira Hudson

Dewey was seven-years-old at the time of his father's death. Following his service in Charleston, SC, he resided on Groves St. and later on Meeting St. at Reynolds Avenue near the naval base. He operated two ESSO service stations in Charleston. In 1935, ailing with diabetes, Dewey moved to Winnesboro, SC where he worked briefly for Winnesboro Mills and also operated a taxi service during WWII. On December 27, 1952, Dewey died at the young age of 51 never to know many of his grandchildren.

Dewey Hudson

Dewey Hudson & Jessie Hickman

Alfred Bennie Hudson, son of Admiral Dewey Hudson and Jessie Elvira Hickman, was born in 1922. For more information see The Alfred Bennie Hudson Family.

Acknowledgements

Ben Hudson, the son of Alfred Bennie Hudson Sr., and grandson of Admiral Dewey Hudson, has spent a number of years researching our family history. It is to him that we owe the privaledge of knowing our hazy lineage through Jesse, Joakim, and Hall Hudson. His relentless persistence brought about the discovery of the Hudson's involvement in the Civil War, the War of 1812, and WWI, induding the only known photograph of George Washington Hudson brought to full restoration.

Bob Davison, son of Addie Hancock, grandson of Eva Hudson, has been kind enough to provide information regarding Eva Hudson and the Hancock descendants, including photos. Although, he provided written records he also gave a history of memories about his "Granny" that can never again be relived, only retold.

I am Jennifer Hudson Taylor, daughter of Bennie Lee Hudson, granddaughter of Lee Thomas Hudson, and great-granddaughter of Thomas Bennie Hudson. I hope to maintain our family website as it grows, and through it, provide a connection to other family members we have yet to discover.

Pamela and Steve Hudson, descendants from the Elijah Hudson line have also contributed a large portion of wonderful family history and source documents. To learn more about the Elijah Hudson descendants please visit their well-developed and informative Web site.

This Hudson Genealogy
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