In January 1943, the Town of Hodges held a war bond auction that raised about $47,000, and as an award the War Department allowed Hodges to name a P-51 Mustang fighter aircraft. The plane was named "The Spirit of Hodges." Built by the North American Aviation Company and modified in Birmingham, Alabama, the P-51 was a long-range, single-seated aircraft that flew most of its wartime missions as a bomber escort in raids over Germany and was also used against the Japanese in the Pacific. It is not clear whether the "Spirit of Hodges" was shot down or returned to the United States. On October 11, 2007, the Town of Hodges celebrated its 100th birthday, and the Hodges Historical Committee's first festival again honored the P-51 by using it as the celebration's theme.