Henry Hitchcock was born May 25, 1816, in Deerfield, Massachusetts. His parents were Henry and  Betsy Kimberly Hitchcock. His parents were strict abolitionists and true New Englanders. He received his education in the common school of the town and he also attended Deerfield Academy.

 

After completing his education Henry farmed with his father. At the age of twenty-four he became a station agent for the Rutland and Burlington Railroad in Vermont. In 1846 he came west to work for the Michigan Central Railroad. The company, which was incorporated that year, established service between Detroit and St. Joseph, Michigan. The line was later extended to Chicago.

 

The investors in the Central Michigan Railroad were intent on reaching Chicago and providing service further west. The Central Military Track Railroad, founded by investors in Galesburg, wasessential to that plan.

 

In 1856 C.G. Hammond, who was on the Board of Directors of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, selected Hitchcock as assistant superintendent of the line. Ten years later, Hitchcock became division superintendent at Galesburg.

 

In those days the C.B.&Q.  was noted for the quality of its service, roadbed and track as well as the elegance of its passenger cars. It also had a good reputation for on-time performance.

 

As Superintendent Hitchcock was required to oversee all aspects of railroad operations. With the increase in the size of the operations, various departments were established for different kinds of work. Mr. Hitchcock was exceptionally good at selecting the heads of those departments.

 

Outside his work at the railroad, Hitchcock was engaged in farming and livestock raising. He was a trustee of Central Congregational Church and a director of the Second National Bank. In 1872 he became a trustee of Knox College and left a significant part of his fortune to the institution upon his death.

 

Henry Hitchcock married Martha Arms on June 9, 1841. They had three children, all of whom died before the parents. William lived to be sixteen years of age; George died at the age of seven months and Mattie died in 1881 in her early twenties. Mrs. Hitchcock died in 1899. All are buried in Hope Cemetery.

 

The obituary published in the Weekly Republican-Register  on April 12, 1884, continued for two columns on the front page of the newspaper. This quotation will illustrate the regard in which Henry Hitchcock was held by the people of Galesburg.

 

“Mr. Hitchcock possessed to a remarkable degree the very qualifications necessary for the great work before him. The demand was for a man of unflinching will; who would shirk no duty and whom no obstacle to the development of the road would daunt;  for one whose loyalty to duty would insure the road against accidents; for one whose insight into the character of men would enable him to select men best qualified for the numerous postitions to be filled; for a man who would tolerate no carelessness or remissness apt to injure the good name of the road; for one who would settle all claims due from the company to others with the strictest regard to justice; for one who for all these, possessed the qualifications of experience and of a common sense that made the best use of that experience; for one who had a wide range of faculties to grasp the many departments since then separated, and for a man, the sobriety and purity of whose life would be a living example for good to those employed under him.”

 

Henry Hitchcock retired from the C.B.&Q. in June 1881 due to health problems. He was given a fine gold watch by the Board of Directors.