[1] It was named for Amos Hodgman, a member of the 7th Regiment Kansas Volunteer Cavalry.

In 1867, Hodgeman County was established, and named for Amos Hodgman, member of the 7th Regiment Kansas Volunteer Cavalry.

[5] The Homestead Act of 1862 drew many settlers to the region beginning in the spring of 1877, with only a small amount of wheat sown that year due to hail damage.

[5] While many small towns, such as Kidderville and Milroy, sprung up in the early years of the county, only Jetmore and Hanston survived as permanent settlements.

24.70% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Following amendment to the Kansas Constitution in 1986, the county remained an alcohol-free, or "dry", county until 2004, when voters approved the sale of alcoholic beverages by the individual drink with a 30% food sales requirement.

At the beginning of the 1992 film Unforgiven, the protagonist William Munny, played by Clint Eastwood, is living in Hodgeman County and working as a pig farmer, while attempting to hide evidence of his violent past from all those around him.