On January 24, 1775, the Massachusetts Provincial Congress formed a special company of Minuteman in which Captain Nathaniel Wade would be the commander and Lieutenant Hodgkins would be the second in command. From January 1775 to January 1776, Hodgkins served in the Minuteman Company under Wade and would be placed on alert for the Battle of Concord and Battle of Lexington before being moved to take part in the Siege of Boston. Wade and Hodgkins bravely led their minutemen company at the Battle of Bunker Hill and would later be added to the New England Army following the successes at Boston. In January 1776, he and many of his fellow minutemen reenlisted and were transferred to New York. He would see action in the Battle of Long Island, Battle of Harlem Heights, Battle of White Plains, take part in the retreat from New York, and assist in the Battle of Trenton.