Among the leading business men of New Haven is numbered Harley M. Hodges, a member of the well known firm of H. M. Hodges & Brother, wholesale and retail dealers in wall paper, painters’ supplies and pictures. He was born in Gloucestershire, England, on the 24th of January, 1874, a son of  William Henry and Sarah (Drew) Hodges, in whose family were seven children, two sons and five daughters. The parents never came to the new world but spent their entire lives in England, where the father was manager of a large iron foundry and was a very successful manufacturer. He died in 1886 at the age of fifty-six years and the mother passed away in 1882 at the age of thirty-six.

     Harley M. Hodges is the fourth child in the family and the first twelve years of his life were spent in his native land, where he received private instruction. In 1886 he came to the United States and was a student in a public school at Westfield, Massachusetts, for a time. He also studied under a special tutor after coming to New Haven and thus acquired a good practical education. The business with which he is now connected was established by Brazos & Hulse in 1868 at No. 5 Broadway, and is the only complete decorative establishment of its kind in the city. It is the only concern in New Haven in the wholesale and retail paint, wall paper and picture business, and the company, now known as H. M. Hodges & Brother, supply the painters and decorators of New Haven with everything needed in their business. Since 1895 Harley M. Hodges has been connected with the enterprise, which from a small beginning has been developed into an extensive business.

     Mr. Hodges was married in West Haven, May 10, 1899, to Miss Alice Elizabeth Smith, a daughter of S. Brace and Jennie B. Smith, who represent a well known and prominent family of that place. Mr. and Mrs. Hodges have one child, Lois Elizabeth, who was born in 1900 and graduated from the West Haven high school in 1917, and is now attending Smith College.

     Mr. and Mrs. Hodges are prominent members of the Congregational church of West Haven and he has served as trustee of the church and superintendent of the Sunday school. He is also a member of the Masonic fraternity and is connected with the Automobile Club and the Chamber of Commerce. For seven and a half years he was a member of the Governor’s Foot Guard and then resigned. In business he has worked his way upward entirely through his own efforts, having started out for himself with the determination to succeed. His pleasant, courteous manner in dealing with strangers and customers has won him an enviable place in the business world and made him a host of warm friends.