A man named Joshua Hodge lived in Tasmania in the 1800s and dozens of his descendants are my DNA cousins. I’ve been unable to confirm conclusively who Joshua’s parents are, and therefore how he’s related to me, but my theory is that Joshua is the brother of my 3x great-grandfather Thomas Hodge, making him my 3x great-granduncle. The amount of DNA shared with Joshua’s descendants suggests this is possible.

Joshua Hodge in Van Diemen’s Land/Tasmania

Joshua Hodge had a relationship with Sarah Munnings from around 1849 or 1850. He was working as a blacksmith and living at Bothwell, north-west of Hobart. No record of marriage has been found for Joshua and Sarah, but they had two children together, Sarah Fanny Hodge born c1850 and Joshua Edward Hodge born 1853.

Then in 1856, the same year Van Diemen’s Land became known as Tasmania, Joshua married Elizabeth Sarah Tunks, with whom he went on to have thirteen children between 1856 and 1885. They were: Arthur Henry, Albert Ernest, Rose Matilda, Peter, Charlotte, William John, Daniel, Flora Elizabeth, Charles Ernest, Walter Thomas, George Amos, Frederick James, and Francis Norman. Photos I’ve seen of Joshua and some of his children show some resemblance with my 2x great-grandfather and his children.

Joshua died in December 1897. He had poor eyesight, and days before Christmas he got lost near his home in the Green Ponds district, now Kempton. Search parties looked for him, and he was even feared lost in a bushfire. He was found near a dry creek bed some days later, tracks showing he’d been wandering in all directions trying to find his way to safety. Joshua’s death registration says he was 79, putting his year of birth at around 1818, and that his father was Joshua Hodge, however these pieces of information are unconfirmed.

More than one Joshua

There’s some discrepancy amongst researchers about whether or not Joshua Hodge was a convict or free settler.

There’s evidence suggesting he was not the convict Joshua Hodges who was transported on the Atlas. That man was born in Holcombe, Somerset in c1810 and arrived as a convict at age 22 in 1833. He was illiterate and later worked as a shepherd, and married Elizabeth Allthorpe in 1884. He died in August 1897 and his age was recorded as 85. This Joshua’s surname is consistently recorded as Joshua Hodges, with an s on the end.

Unfortunately, there’s no conclusive evidence found for a different man named Joshua Hodge arriving or being born in Tasmania in the correct time period.

DNA cousins

My DNA cousins descended from Joshua’s children are through both his spouses, Sarah Munnings and Elizabeth Sarah Tunks. My great-aunt, who is Thomas Hodge’s great-granddaughter, shares as much as 120cM with one of Joshua Hodge’s great-great-grandchildren, 113cM with great-grandchild, and 112cM with a grandchild. The predicted relationship for relationships with that amount of shared DNA is anywhere from second to fourth cousins.

In addition to shared DNA, there’s other information which contributes to my theory about Joshua.

No birth or baptism found for Joshua yet: My 3x great-grandfather Thomas Hodge’s family moved around a lot and he and his siblings were born in different counties across the south of England. It’s quite possible Joshua is a child born to Peter and Fanny Hodge whom I haven’t found a record for yet.

Joshua or John? Could Joshua’s name actually be John? Peter and Fanny Hodge had a son named John, Thomas’ younger brother, who was born in Bath in 1822. I’ve not conclusively traced John after that time. Could Joshua and John be the same man?

Shared occupation: Joshua Hodge’s marriage to Elizabeth Sarah Tunks, and the birth registration for their son Joshua, record his occupation as blacksmith. My 3x great-grandfather Thomas Hodge was a blacksmith, and his father Peter Hodge worked as a whitesmith.

Inherited names: Joshua named his eldest daughter Sarah Fanny Hodge. Sarah is most likely after her mother Sarah Munnings, but the name Fanny could be after Fanny Hodge, nee Horn, the mother of Thomas Hodge and possibly also Joshua Hodge’s mother. Joshua’s third son was named Peter, and that could have been after Peter Hodge, the father of Thomas Hodge.

Most Recent Common Ancestors (MRCA): A couple of the DNA cousin matches with descendants of Joshua Hodge also share matches who are descended from siblings of Thomas Hodge’s mother Fanny Hodge nee Horn. Their MRCA are Gregory Horn and Sarah Quartley. That means they have DNA connections to the Horn family, which only intersects with the Hodge family when Fanny Horn married Peter Hodge. More evidence that Joshua Hodge is my 3x great-granduncle.

So what do you think of my theory? Are you related to Joshua Hodge? Have you found his arrival in Van Diemen’s Land? If you have information which could help untangle my Hodge conundrum, please get in contact.

Selected references

‘Sad death in the bush’, Launceston Examiner, 12 January 1898, p. 4, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article39655102, accessed 22 June 2025.

Marriage of Joshua Hodge and Elizabeth Sarah Tunks, married 14 March 1856, Green Ponds, Brighton, Tasmania, Name Indexes: 850427, RGD37/1/15 no 31, Libraries Tasmania, https://libraries.tas.gov.au/Record/NamesIndex/850427, accessed 19 July 2025.

Various birth, marriage and death registrations for the children of Joshua Hodge, Libraries Tasmania.

Death registration of Joshua Hodge, died 20 December 1897, Green Ponds, Brighton, Tasmania, Name Indexes: 1218323, RGD35/1/67 no 372, Libraries Tasmania, https://libraries.tas.gov.au/Digital/RGD35-1-67/RGD35-1-67P145, accessed 19 July 2025.

Death registration of Joshua Hodges, died 25 August 1897, Young Town, Longford, Tasmania, Name Indexes: 1216893, RGD35/1/66 no 386, Libraries Tasmania, https://libraries.tas.gov.au/Record/NamesIndex/1216893, accessed 19 July 2025.

Baptism of Joshua Hodges, baptised 18 November 1810, Register of Baptisms in the Parish of Holcombe in the County of Somerset 1783-1813, Somerset Heritage Service; Taunton, Somerset, England; Somerset Parish Records, 1538-1914; Reference Number: D\p\holc/2/1/3, Ancestry.com.au, accessed 19 July 2025.

Petition for Joshua Hodges, under sentence commuted to transportation for life, Somerset Lent Assizes, Taunton, March 1832,Home Office: Criminal Petitions: Series I, England & Wales, Crime, Prisons & Punishment, 1770-1935, Prison Registers, HO17, 114, WQ17, The National Archives, Kew, Surrey, England, FindMyPast.co.uk, accessed 19 July 2025.

Conduct record of Joshua Hodges, convict per Atlas, Name Indexes: 1402233, CON34-1-4 image 344, Libraries Tasmania, https://libraries.tas.gov.au/Digital/CON34-1-4/CON34-1-4P344, accessed 19 July 2025.