First:- St Helens is in Lancashire (NOT Yorkshire)
You say:- . I know that James was at the army barracks in Portsmouth in 1841. He joined the army 1838.
With James and Elizabeth Hodgson living in St Helens near Liverpool 1861 census and Elizabeth death St Helens in 1869 by dates and locations known there is this marriage and a baptism may be a faint possibility to pursue further research as below
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A none Conformist birth
Elizabeth Eleanor Davies
Sex Female
Birth Date 28 Jan 1822
Father's Name William Davies
Father's Sex Male
Mother's Name Mary
Mother's Sex Female
Event Type Christening
Event Date 3 Mar 1822
Event Place Ludlow, Shropshire, England, United Kingdom
Event Place (Original) Broad Street Wesleyan, Ludlow, Shropshire, England
Marriage Sep 1840
HODGSON James Liverpool vol 20 page 143
DAVIES Elizabeth Liverpool vol 20 page 143